Love After All
by Dee31
Summary: There are many obstacles that often come between two people destined to be together. Class, race, friends, family, and themselves. When working class Gabriella Montez enters the elite world of P5, meeting both Troy and Zeke, will she find love after all?
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I don't usually use author notes but for this story and situation I felt I needed to. This story is based on a Korean soap opera called _Boys Before Flowers_ and follows a similar path as far as the storyline. It will not be an exact retelling but has many similarities. I also needed to thank Mich (thisisaddicting) for encouraging me on to do this. This was originally intended to be a joint story but with changing circumstances for us both, Mich has graciously offered to help when she can instead for which I am grateful. That being said, with three other stories actively out there, this story will not be updated as frequently but I am going to try to not keep the waiting periods too long. I thought it only fair to forewarn and thank you in advance for your understanding. Without further ado, I present, _Love After All_!

* * *

_Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or places created by the High School Musical franchise or by Disney nor the songs used in this story by various artists. I also do not own the rights to the Boys Before Flowers soap opera for which this story is based on._

Chapter 1

The clock was ticking, literally and figuratively.

Jack and Lucille Bolton, the masterminds behind everything that was Bolton Enterprises, sat at a conference table looking over ten sets of glossy 4x6 pictures and the one page bio that accompanied each. There were six boys and four girls in the mix, each with a stellar GPA at their current public school, each from a lower-middle or lower class family that could never dream of sending their child to Bolton Academy or Bolton University. No, the only chance of that happening is if their child was lucky enough to be picked this afternoon by Jack and Lucille, a decision that would have to be made in the next ten minutes before they would dispatch Brett Carmichael, their right hand man, to notify the recipient of their brand new scholarship to finish their schooling at both Bolton Academy and Bolton University.

Why all of a sudden was Bolton Enterprise, one of the most prosperous group of companies in the world, offering a teenager of a needy family a scholarship? For public relations and nothing else.

"Lucille, I think we need to narrow this down. I like these four and think the others shouldn't have even been included," Jack stated, moving aside the sets of those teenagers Jack thought were more than unworthy of this opportunity. "These two boys and two girls have the best academic reputation in the area but also have outstanding extracurricular activities listed."

Lucille reviewed the final four and moved two out, leaving one boy and one girl left. "Of those, I'd say only these two could actually cut it. Bolton Academy is not a place for weak minded people or weak spirited for that matter. We know already how our son deals with everything there. They need to be just as strong as him."

Brett hid a chuckle by coughing into his hand from where he was standing, watching this process of elimination, from the side of the room. It was Brett's business to know everything concerning Bolton Enterprises and that included the heir to it all, Troy Bolton, a seventeen-year-old boy who had yet to learn what true responsibility meant. In fact, Brett knew of only one real strength in Troy and it was how to fully realize his power and use it to the best of his needs and whims.

"Brett? Are you all right over there?"

"Yes Mrs. Bolton," Brett immediately answered. For all the years he had been working for Bolton Enterprises, closely with both Jack and Lucille, Brett never allowed any informalities between them as that's what kept Brett there. His mind was always to be focused on business in regards to them both and that's the way they wanted it.

"Lucille, we're running out of time. We need to make a scholarship offer to one of these last two soon," Jack reminded her, bringing his wife's attention back to the table. "The new school year is starting in a week and we'll need to also make sure the press gets a hold of this news the right way."

"Yes, yes, I know Jack. It's just so hard. Who do you pick when you know you're giving them something that will change their life so completely, for the better of course?"

Brett decided to step in this exact moment to offer his advice. "What about offering two scholarships? Bolton Enterprises could benefit from two and not just one. It could help the community see Bolton Enterprises as being even more family friendly, community conscious to have vested interest in both students."

Tapping his index finger on his chin, Jack thought about Brett's suggestion and ultimately shook his head. "We're already showing the public that we care by even picking one of these ten to be admitted with an all expense paid education through college. I think that's charitable enough while also reinforcing the Academy's and University's standing of being exclusive. Why are we doing this again?"

Lucille sighed as she leaned back in her chair, running a hand through her dark locks. "We're doing this because lately our schools have been accused of being a school for only the rich, our hospitals too expensive and out of reach for most people without insurance, our resorts catered only to those who are on executive teams of Fortune 500 companies, and our banks only interested in funding things that guarantee a solid profit. We're doing this to save face and the future of Bolton Enterprises for our son."

Nodding, Jack studied the boy and girl who were looking back at him via the glossy photo, wondering whose life they were going to bless in under an hour. "All right, I pick her."

Grateful that Jack made the final decision, Lucille leaned forward again and saw that Jack's finger was on the bio sheet of a Latino looking girl who was sixteen years old and came from a family that owned a small time computer store that sold and fixed computers, all according to the sheet of course. Lucille's eyes narrowed as she flipped over the picture and saw the name of the young girl who was about to receive the best news of her little life.

"Gabriella Montez, welcome to Bolton Academy."

* * *

"Oh no, she did not show up with that Gucci bag! That was so mine last season. Who the hell does she think she is?"

"Please, she's not as bad as her over there! Girl has on the most badly copied Louis Vuitton sunglasses I've ever seen. Bet those diamonds are all fake too."

"You've got to be kidding me! He's actually trying to pull off Troy's hairdo! No one can pull that off like Troy! The boy is insane! He looks like an idiot!"

There was laughter before yet another voice chimed in. "That's putting it lightly. Any guy who tries to copy P5 is out of their freaking minds. There are only five guys eligible for those hairdos and they haven't gotten to school yet."

"Ugh, someone totally hand me my genuine Louis Vuitton sunglasses. Total fashion victim at twelve o'clock!"

Gabriella Montez, who had had her head down throughout this entire conversation she couldn't help but hear, looked up in a panic only to sigh with relief as she realized that the group of girls gossiping on the steps nearby that led to some unknown building were staring at another brunette girl across the quad. Swallowing, Gabriella tried to settle her nerves, a part of her wanting to beat herself up for even caring what these superficial princesses thought of her while the other just wanted to make it through the day.

About a week ago, a gentleman named Brett Carmichael visited the Montez family's little computer and repair store, Memory, Monitors, Motherboards, and More!, also known as 4M's, and dropped the big news that Gabriella was being awarded a special and exclusive scholarship to Bolton Academy and Bolton University both. The conditions were that Gabriella had to maintain a 3.5 GPA every semester for both the Academy and University and had to stay out of trouble, not something too hard for the petite brunette with wavy hair that went a little past her shoulders. Sure Gabriella could be outspoken and didn't stomach for things being too unfair one way or the other, but Gabriella was usually one of the most level headed people around. Kelsi Nielson, Gabriella's best friend who she used to go to school with and worked at a small coffee shop with, would readily agree that Gabriella would have no trouble following the terms of the scholarship.

Thing was, what Gabriella wasn't so sure about, was whether or not she'd fit in.

As her mocha eyes took in more of the campus that made up Bolton Academy, her eyes spotted a horde, no joke, of students dressed in uniforms similar to her, running towards a group of guys who weren't dressed the same way. No, these five guys, even from where Gabriella stood, radiated something different that made them stand out more than just their clothing being different, being slacks or khakis with button ups, while everyone else was stuck in stiff, itchy uniforms, including Gabriella.

Gabriella had to stifle a laugh as she continued watching the five guys walking across the quad in their current V formation with one chestnut haired guy leading the other four, which consisted of a blonde who looked paler than the apparent leader, another guy of about the same complexion with dark hair that was of bigger build, and two guys with dark skin, one of whom had a slightly wild hairdo. It wasn't how the guys physically looked that made Gabriella want to laugh, far from it as they each seemed rather good looking from where she could see them from her current spot, but that she was reminded of a flock of geese or other flying birds flying from one place or another.

Her laughter died though, as little of it that escaped, when she felt a glare on the back of her neck, turning to see a red head, a blonde, and a brunette all staring at her with looks of disbelief on their faces. Pushing the laughter back, Gabriella turned her head back around to try to avoid their attention but soon found the trio standing in front of her, two of them with their hands on their hips while their leader, the brunette, stood in front of Gabriella with her arms crossed over her chest.

"Excuse me, but aren't you the little charity case the Bolton family picked up?" the brunette demanded. "What right do you have to be laughing at any of us when it's clear as daylight that you don't belong."

"I'm sorry, I wasn't laughing at anyone, honest. Just a thought of mine," Gabriella quickly replied, really not wanting to break a condition of her scholarship already on her first day. "I'm sorry, what's your name?"

The trio once again looked at each other in shock, outrage surfacing shortly after. "You seriously don't know who we are?" the red head asked this time. "Everyone knows who we are!"

"Wait, maybe she doesn't though. After all, she must be too busy working with her family to keep alive to pay attention to the important people in society," the blonde stated.

The brunette laughed at this. "So very true. We're only going to tell you this once so you better listen well new girl. I'm Victoria Peterson, the blonde is Kristen Samson, and the red head is Alison Meyer. We are the female equivalents of P5 or at least the closest that come to it so you best learn our names, our faces, and show us some respect if you expect to last around here."

Gabriella blinked. "P5?"

Sighing, Victoria shook her head, putting a hand to her forehead, acting like Gabriella had just told her that Gabriella hadn't a clue what color the sky was instead of what P5 was. "I'm being this patient with you only because you're new. P5 stands for Powerful Five, the name we've all given to the group of five guys that passed through the quad just now. Five guys who could rule the country and world if they wanted to I'm sure. They come from wealthy, well off families with great influence. The leader, Troy, is the heir to Bolton Enterprises, the giver of your scholarship."

"There's also Zeke Baylor, Ryan Evans who has a twin who just went off to Europe, Chad Danforth, and Jason Cross," Kristen added. "All of the most eligible bachelors around."

"But also the biggest playboys too," Alison threw in for added effect. "Zeke is the least of them all though or maybe Troy is. Both aren't as into that playboy scene with females as much as Chad, Jason, and Ryan."

"So, there you have it. Now you can't play Miss Innocent anymore about our P5 or us for that matter." Victoria gave Gabriella one last one over before tossing her locks over her shoulder. "Come on girls. We've wasted enough of today on a charity case."

Hearing her words stung Gabriella a little but only for a little while. Instead, Gabriella gathered her nerves together and set her eyes back on the map in her one hand and her new schedule in the other. Thankfully, Gabriella was a junior already so there would only be two full years of being in a school where everyone totally knew each other since Kindergarten it seemed.

When Brett had first spoken about the scholarship, Gabriella had made no secret of hating the idea of attending Bolton Academy and turned him down. Her parents though, immediately shot her own decision down and told Brett that Gabriella of course would be there, lecturing her later on what a wonderful opportunity this would be. They saw it as a way to advance the family's standing in the community but also as a way for Gabriella to get a better education than she was currently getting at the public high school. Sure Gabriella was in mostly AP and senior level classes but Gabriella felt comfortable there, more mingled in, and had Kelsi there.

Here at Bolton Academy, well, it was her and her alone from the looks of it. With a sigh, Gabriella realized it was time for her to find her way around campus and put her mind to finding her first class of her new schedule at her brand new school and life.

* * *

Gabriella had been informed by Brett before he departed 4M's that she would be automatically placed in the best courses for her skill set. After four periods of rather intense classes, Gabriella could already tell he hadn't lied. The classes she had attended already proved that maybe Gabriella's mother had a point about the courses being too easy for her at the public high school she went to but Gabriella still wished she was back there starting her first day with Kelsi by her side.

Now Gabriella had about an hour break for lunch and knew it was right on time as her stomach started complaining. Not having packed herself a lunch until last minute, Gabriella had forgotten to grab an apple or something belonging to the fruit family and figured it was a good excuse to find the cafeteria. After finding the building it was in, Gabriella got a little lost as to which floor it was on, realizing that the map must be at least a little out of date as the spot marked as the cafeteria was currently a music room.

Instead of giving up, Gabriella wandered the halls, picking up the scent of delicious cooking. It wasn't a smell Gabriella associated with school food but she shrugged as she continued to walk, figuring that since the grounds of the school were kept so immaculately that gourmet cooking for students instead of mass produced greasy food would also be a given high standard for Bolton Academy as well.

To Gabriella's surprise though, when she found the open door where the aroma was coming from, it wasn't a cafeteria as she had hoped. Instead, it was a small room with several different kitchen like setups around the room, each with a stove, oven, sink, and counter space. Her eyes caught on the sole person in the room, the guy responsible for the wonderful smells that made Gabriella's stomach grumble just a little more.

Unable to stop herself, Gabriella tilted her head to the side as she observed the African-American guy with black hair that was almost buzzed off with only a few centimeters covering his head easily move around the kitchen station where he was clearly cooking something wonderful. She watched the way his full lips stayed curved upwards as he concentrated on slicing and dicing different ingredients for whatever dish he was making, seeming so content to be doing just that there in that time.

Gabriella could have continued to watch him work for the rest of lunch but ruined it by letting out a sneeze she had failed to control. The guy instantly turned his attention towards her and Gabriella felt like she'd die of embarrassment. When his brown eyes continued to stare into her own, Gabriella swallowed before taking a step back only to bump into something or someone, whirling around to see another guy, this one with blonde hair, staring down at her for a moment before he turned his attention to the guy in the classroom.

"Zeke, Troy wanted to know if you were going to grace us with your presence or not today," he called out, causing Gabriella to look back at the original guy who had caught her attention for those few minutes just in time to catch him roll his eyes.

"Tell Troy I've got something better to do at the moment Ryan," Zeke replied, looking back down at the frying pan in front of him and stirring the sizzling ingredients around to keep anything from burning. "I'll catch you guys later before end of lunch, promise."

"All right Zeke, later!"

When the blonde was gone, Gabriella found herself watching the guy, Zeke, continue preparing his meal, uncertain of the draw she had to him, something she hadn't experienced before in her lifetime. Both he and the blonde, Ryan, looked familiar but Gabriella knew there was no reason outside of this school why she would know them. Instead, Gabriella settled on observing Zeke a bit more before his gaze wandered back to her.

"Can I help you?" Zeke's tone was not mean but it wasn't the most welcoming either.

"Umm, the cafeteria?" Gabriella stumbled out, wanting to smack herself for her lack of eloquence.

Nodding his understanding, Zeke replied, "It's upstairs, second floor. They renovated over the summer and it's brand new. After you go up the main stairs, turn right and take the first hallway to your left down halfway. Double glass doors, probably decent smells wafting out."

"Umm, thank you," Gabriella returned, seeing him nod before going back to his cooking. Mortified that she would do something else to humiliate herself in front of him, Gabriella scurried away and followed Zeke's instructions, eventually finding the cafeteria and finding herself speechless yet again once she entered.

Instead of the typical line of students waiting for food in plastic containers that smelled of grease, food was served on what looked like fine china and was served to tables by staff like waiters do in restaurants, as she served customers at the coffee shop. Under closer inspection, Gabriella saw the food the chefs were preparing looked to be of the best quality, having a sneaky suspicion that the prices of said food would match its appearance and quality.

When she picked up an apple that looked absolutely delicious and went to the cashier, her suspicions were confirmed when she was told it would be $4.25.

"For just this apple?"

The worker stared at her before sighing. "Yes, for that apple. It is organic after all, not like you Bolton Academy students would eat anything that wasn't the absolute best. It's not like $4.25 is all that much for Daddy's Princess."

"Excuse me but I don't know who you're talking to. I'm no princess and $4.25 is expensive, even if it is organic!" Gabriella exclaimed, feeling insulted that she was assumed to be just like every other Bolton Academy student.

Throwing up her hands, the older woman realized she was antagonizing a student for which she could be fired over and was quick to apologize. "Sorry, whatever you say. Do you want the apple or not?"

"Not, thank you," Gabriella answered, turning back and putting the apple back in the basket she had pulled it from, instead walking towards an empty table in a corner and settling down to pull out her lunch.

After telling a few workers who came by that she was fine and didn't need anything from the kitchens, Gabriella was left alone to observe the room, soaking up the experience as she surveyed the room and what other students were eating. Gabriella was the only one in the room with a paper bag full of homemade food she made herself. There were a handful of other people who seemed to have takeout food but most of the students were eating off china, food that Gabriella didn't want to even imagine the price of.

Instead, Gabriella continued to eat her food in peace, getting up and throwing away her garbage for which a worker nearby gave her a disbelieving look for. 'What world did I step into by becoming a student of Bolton Academy to earn me that type of look just for throwing away trash?' she wondered as she left the cafeteria and then the building all together.

Planning on using the extra time Gabriella now had on her hands before her next class, Gabriella decided to search out her last three classrooms. Before she got far though, loud chanting caught her attention. Thinking that it was a game or something fun going on, Gabriella followed the sound and saw a group of uniforms gathered together in a circle around something.

Curious, Gabriella walked closer to it, realizing that there were six people in the middle of the circle, a girl who looked to be about Gabriella's age with wavy brown hair and a curvy figure, and five guys, one of which looked rather annoyed to be having to look at the girl in front of him. 'Why do they seem familiar…'

As Gabriella's attention went from the guy and girl to the four guys standing behind the guy, Gabriella instantly recognized the two guys, Ryan and Zeke, she had seen outside the kitchen classroom. Gabriella let out a little gasp as everything shifted into place and she understood that she had actually been observing one of the P5 as Victoria and the other two girls called the group of guys.

Gabriella's attention was drawn back on the leader, his name being Troy Gabriella recalled, as he circled the brunette, who was smiling her best at him with a cake in her hands while Troy just smirked. "So, you think a cake will buy my attention do you?"

"Well, no," the girl started, suddenly looking a bit more nervous to Gabriella as Troy stopped right in front of her. "I just thought you'd enjoy something sweet, something delicious. For you and the rest of P5."

"And what exactly does P5 stand for?"

"Umm, well… Powerful Five."

Chuckling, Troy nodded his head. "Very good. I'm sorry, what's your name?"

Feeling horrified for the other girl, Gabriella was surprised when the answer came rather clearly. "I'm Martha, Martha Cox."

"Well Martha, part of being one of the Powerful Five means that I have unlimited access to bakers, cooks, and every other type of kitchen staff desired. Not just any kitchen staff but the best in the world. I have chefs and bakers at home who come from five star restaurants from around the world. Why would I be interested in your silly cake?"

When Martha didn't respond right away, Gabriella felt the urge to speak for her in the face of someone who seemed to be little more than a bully. 'No Gabriella, no trouble. Scholarship and parents' hopes and dreams are based on your behavior here.'

"Now see, I could imagine you eating it for me. In fact, it looks like you may have gotten a head start," Troy replied, watching as the look of confusion grew on Martha's face. Before she could blink, Troy's hand shot out and took a piece of the cake and wiped it across Martha's cheek, making the girl wince while the crowd of students gathered began snickering, giggling, and laughing all at once. "Messy eater you are too."

Seeing that no one else was going to help the now trembling girl, Gabriella pushed her way through and stepped in front of Troy before she knew what she was doing. "She may be a messy eater but at least she was considerate enough to even think of you when she bought this cake. It's a lot more consideration than you are showing her right now!"

Troy blinked, staring down at the fiery exotic looking petite girl in front of him. "Please tell me you aren't sticking up for this girl! She is so far beneath me I'd never consider her. In fact, so are you. I've never seen you before. Are you a freshman? Did you get lost and not realize how out of bounds you just stepped?"

"I'm a junior and I at least know who I am, a person with a heart to not let someone suffer unlike the idiots around here!"

There was more laughter from all around Gabriella while she continued looking at Troy a few moments longer before turning to face Martha. "Are you okay?"

Martha, more than surprised that someone had stepped in to save her from Troy's wrath, nodded. "I'm all right."

Gabriella could tell though that the girl was lying, seeing the tears in her eyes. Before Gabriella could respond, she felt her right shoulder shoved hard, causing her to stumble into Martha, who then dropped the cake between them, causing cake to splatter onto both of their legs.

When she whirled around, Gabriella was surprised to find that Troy was standing several feet away with his friends while another guy stood nearby her snickering, clearly the one to have shoved her. As Gabriella's instincts made her take a few steps closer to him, Gabriella stopped herself, counting to ten despite feeling the cake pieces slide down her legs. "You jerk!"

This made the guy laugh even more. "You were just asking for it. No one opposes anyone in P5 and gets away with it. Trust me, that was only a taste of the treatment you'll get if you cross them again."

"Oh, so you're one of their little minions? Is that what P5 is? A group of bullies?" Gabriella demanded, looking between the guy and the group of five guys now all staring at her. "Is that what you are?"

Troy let out an actual laugh. "You're implying that we actually waste our time with losers like you all. Hardly. As you just witnessed, I didn't have to even think about touching you. The students who know what's what here at Bolton Academy know the rules and laws of the land, well for the most part besides you and your little friend here. I suspect you're the charity case my parents let in here so I'll take it easy on you today but let this be a warning. Don't cross me or my boys, ever, or your life here will be miserable and pathetic, trust me on that. You already have a more than lousy social and home life I bet so why wreck your life even more? Guys, let's go."

Something within Gabriella snapped despite her best intentions. She could take people teasing her, laughing at her expense, but not when they made fun of her family. Flying with speed, Gabriella flew at Troy and shoved his retreating back, making Troy stumble and actually fall to the ground, quickly flipping over to stare in disbelief at her. "What the fuck is your problem?"

"You are! You talk about us non-P5 disciples as being nothing worthy to bother you with but it's you who is unworthy of being in our presence! No one talks crap about my family, especially when you don't even know the beginning of anything about me!"

Troy accepted Ryan's and Jason's help up before brushing off his clothes, glaring back at the brunette. "I was willing to give you a grace period but I don't think I will. Consider yourself more than warned. You wanted to interfere in your little friend's fate and you now are rewarded with something a great deal more than what she would have been given. You're just a crazy bitch, I don't know what my parents were thinking of to let you in here."

Before Gabriella could say more, Troy led the rest of his friends away, one lingering behind, Zeke, as he surveyed Gabriella with a look on his face that appeared to be amusement before he too joined the group of five guys now walking away.

Remembering the other brunette, Gabriella turned and rushed back to her, seeing her gather up the splattered pieces of cake and putting it on the cardboard platter it had been on before with tear tracks on her cheeks. "Here, let me help you."

Martha sniffled, looking up and giving Gabriella a watery smile. "Thank you, for earlier. You didn't have to. No one ever stands up to P5."

"I'm starting to see that but I couldn't let him do whatever he had in mind to you."

"But what about you?"

Gabriella shrugged. "If the school kicks me out, I go back to my old school. No big deal. I'm Gabriella Montez by the way, the freaky new girl."

Martha smiled at this. "Nice to meet you Gabriella. I'm Martha Cox, the freaky outsider. Guess we were meant to connect on this other level together huh? I just wish I didn't get you into so much trouble."

As Gabriella gathered up some more cake pieces, Gabriella shook her head. "I don't think they'll yank away my scholarship for a verbal sparring, even if he is the heir to Bolton Enterprises."

Sadly, Martha shook her head. "I wish I meant the school. No, it's P5. They're going to do something and I'm afraid it's my fault. I was so silly to think to do something nice for them, to maybe get accepted. I don't know what I was thinking."

"You were thinking of being nice, nothing wrong with that."

Silence hung in the air as they cleaned up the mess, including their legs, and dumped it into the trash, Gabriella relieved she kept a spare set of napkins in her backpack, which she shared with Martha to clean up a little further. Martha caught sight of the time on her watch though and cursed. "We're late to the next period."

"Oh God, that's all I need. Do you know where Frederickson Hall is, Advanced Anatomy and Physiology?"

A smile spread across Martha's lips. "May as well come with me, we can be late together."

"Really?" Gabriella asked, hearing the excitement in her own voice.

"Really, least I could do," Martha replied, giving Gabriella a brighter smile as she wiped away at the tear tracks to clear them from her face.

Feeling better already, Gabriella quickly walked to the next period with Martha at her side, both girls unaware of the clear blue eyes that were watching them scurry away from a distance away, his mind already whirling with the possibilities.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

After venting to Kelsi late into the night after all of her homework was done, Gabriella had finally gone to sleep but didn't feel any bit rested for her efforts. Earlier in the morning, Gabriella had been woken up by her brother, Geoff, who wanted pancakes for breakfast and Gabriella had obliged, knowing she wouldn't go back to sleep after that since he wouldn't leave her alone.

Thankfully though, the cool air of the morning helped Gabriella wake up more with each step she took on her way to Bolton Academy. She had refused her father's offer of a ride to school, wanting to avoid the weird feeling of being the only student there being dropped off by their actual parent instead of driving her own car or having a driver drive off in some luxury car. True, Gabriella had no plans of bending to the superficial ways of the rest of the student body but a part of her still felt the need to minimize her differences to avoid hopefully more conflict.

As strongly as she felt about what happened to Martha and then herself at the hands of P5 and their minions, Gabriella had been reminded at home last night how important it was that she keep her scholarship at Bolton Academy and then Bolton University but more importantly how lucky she was. It was an argument that Gabriella really had wished her parents had sided with her on instead of against her, but it was what it was.

_"They are all just complete stuck up, spoiled brats! If you could have only seen the way they were treating this poor girl," Gabriella seethed before passing her brother Geoff the bowl of peas. "This isn't the school for me, I'm telling you Mom and Dad."_

_"It was only your first day sweetie," Maria attempted to soothe. "I'm sure it will get better."_

_"Besides, you've always been our level headed, mature child," Luis threw in, taking note of the way his son's tongue was currently sticking out at them. "Point proven."_

_Geoff let out a little huff. "Puhlease, she's clearly not sophisticated enough for that place. I heard it's amazing!"_

_"Want to trade places Geoff?" Gabriella asked, seeing their mother shake her head at her. "What? I'm serious, I really and truly would rather never go back there Mom."_

_Maria scooped another spoonful of peas from the bowl and placed it on her son's plate after seeing that he had given himself too small of a serving. "Gabriella, why don't you give it another try? I know being a new student in any school is tough and I can imagine that Bolton Academy is no exception but this is the opportunity of a lifetime Ella."_

_"I understand that but…"_

_Seeing that their daughter really didn't understand it, Luis stepped in again. "Gabriella, listen to me. No matter what type of trouble you are being given for being different is just the price you have to pay to be given this gift of an education the Bolton's have given you. Your mother and I have always recognized that you were smart enough to skip grades in the public school system and deserve the best educational opportunities available to you. This is the blessing we've been praying for, don't you see? For you to be given the best chances in life to make the most of yourself."_

_"Your father is right Gabriella," Maria added. "Refusing this scholarship would not only be a slap in the face to the Bolton family and company but also to me and your dad. What's wrong with us wanting nothing but the best for you?"_

_"To want you to have the best opportunities available to you? These boys sound like your typical bullies, guys I'd rather you not be involved with. Just ignore them sweetie."_

_Gabriella blew her bangs out of her eyes before shoving a fork of peas into her mouth to chew on as she decided on how to respond to her parents. "You really would rather me ignore these idiots and continue on at a place that I clearly hate with a passion already?"_

_"I know it sounds bad but please try to see the good in the situation. Your father and I really only want the very best for you, nothing more or less. If you give this a try for another month and it really is as difficult as you make it out to be after only one day, then we'll respectfully decline the scholarship and opportunity."_

_Knowing when she was beaten, Gabriella bit her lower lip before forcing herself to give in to her parents. "All right, I'll give it more time. In a month though, when I want to go back to school with Kelsi, I want to go back, no guilt."_

_"All right, understood," Luis replied, really hoping that it wouldn't come to that._

Sure, in the end there was a compromise that was agreed to between her and her parents, but Gabriella would have rather been able to never have to set foot on the Bolton Academy campus again as she was now.

There were only three things that she could think of during the walk to school that could be considered positives about this experience.

The first thing was that as much as Gabriella hated to admit it, Bolton Academy did offer the best academic curriculum and opportunities in the area for sure, but also in the state and country. There were students who attended the academy who were sent there by parents who lived clear across the country and who lived in apartments or studios nearby with hired help or guardians.

The second thing was that Bolton Academy did give Gabriella an opportunity to swim in an environment that was well kept and seemed to be open to any student. If she survived the month time window her parents had agreed on with her, Gabriella had also decided to seek out whether there was an actual swim team to join. It was a hobby of hers that allowed Gabriella to relieve the stress of the day while also staying fit, a combination that kept her healthy overall she'd like to think.

The third and last thing Gabriella could think of that made going to school more attractive was the new and hopefully growing friendship she began with Martha yesterday. Although Gabriella hadn't known Martha for long, from the two afternoon classes they shared and some of the time they spent together after school when Martha showed her around more, including pointing out the pool, Gabriella had a gut feeling that her friendship with Martha would blossom and benefit them both. There was something though in Martha's eyes when they parted ways yesterday that had Gabriella worried, something that she had forgotten about until now as she saw her new friend nervously biting one of her fingernails.

"Morning Martha! What's wrong?"

Martha forced herself to drop her hand by her side and instead crossed her left arm across her midsection. "Remember how I had a bad feeling about the backlash from P5?"

"What did those jerks do to you?" Gabriella demanded, already feeling riled up at just the thought of Martha being scared or hurt by them.

After some hesitation, Martha said, "They didn't do anything to me, it's you. You better come with me to see this."

Seeing no other choice, Gabriella followed Martha to Gabriella's locker and paused as she saw a big, bold number one painted on her red locker. "One? What does that mean?"

"It's a countdown," Martha hesitantly explained, shifting her weight from one foot to another as she saw in her peripheral all the other students slowly gathering around them. "P5 always uses a countdown before they begin their actual wars."

"Wars? You've got to be kidding me! This is a school, not a battlefield!"

"I know, and I agree, but they don't see it that way, especially Troy. I'm afraid I've gotten you on their bad list and quick."

"What do they do in these wars Martha?"

When Martha didn't answer her, someone in the crowd yelled out, "If you value your life, get out now!"

"No one wins a war with P5!"

"You don't stand a chance!"

"Get out of here while you can!"

All the words being thrown at her had the opposite effect on Gabriella though as was intended. Whether friendly words of advice or words meant to scare her off, Gabriella knew that leaving would not only violate her agreement with her parents but would also give the members of P5, especially Troy Bolton, too much satisfaction, too easily, and she didn't plan on going down without a fight.

Ignoring the continued yelling, Gabriella opened her locker and focused on grabbing what she needed before closing it and walking away, grabbing Martha's hand in the process as they left the crowd behind. When they were alone outside, Gabriella finally let out a deep breath. "Is this really serious? This P5 war?"

Martha sadly nodded her head. "No one usually survives a P5 war. It isn't life threatening but it gets to a point where you wish you were dead."

"Then how could you ever want to be a part of them? Why would you do something sweet like give them a cake as you offered yesterday if that's the case Martha?"

"To be wanted, to fit in," Martha confessed, hanging her head down in shame. "I thought over the summer that if I became beautiful enough and gave them the best cake in the city to share that I could start off the year maybe not so much on the outside. I didn't expect to be accepted because of the cake but to at least not be so on the fringe. Clearly, I was delusional."

Gabriella saw how much fitting in meant to the other brunette and reached forward to give Martha a big hug. "Well I'm sorry it didn't work but if it helps, I think you're gorgeous, outside but most importantly inside. You don't need a group of assholes telling you that you're cool to be cool. Promise me that you won't try to sacrifice who you are for them."

After studying the other girl for a few moments, Martha nodded her head. "I don't know how you have all this awesome strength and spirit but I really admire that Gabriella. You'll need it starting tomorrow."

"Is that when I lose the one great friend I've found here?"

With no hesitancy, Martha said, "Of course not. I may not be able to help but I would never abandon you now, not after you coming to my aid got you into this in the first place. Come on, let's get to class."

Gabriella followed Martha's lead and walked into the nearby building to start her second day at Bolton Academy, hoping with all she had that it would go better than her first.

* * *

While the private tutor wrote some equation on the whiteboard in the room the members of P5 always received their private lessons in, Troy's attention was focused on what to do to squash the little rebel who ruined his first day of senior year for him. Troy had spent the rest of the afternoon yesterday playing the event over and over again in his head and still couldn't believe that something as small as a nuisance of a girl with a cake had turned into the first war of the year. It wasn't that Troy loved torturing his peers into respecting him and his friends. To Troy, it just came with the territory and living the image he was born to have.

"Mr. Bolton, can you share with us the answer to the pre-calculus equation I just put up on the board?" Theodore Montgomery, often called Theo, queried of his student who currently had a pissed off look on his face. "Or is there something much more important than mathematics on your mind at the moment?"

Used to being called out by their tutor, Troy glanced up from his laptop screen and met Theo's gaze. "The answer is two plus pi over two plus pi to the third over one hundred ninety two."

Theo nodded, impressed once again by Troy's intelligence and extreme multitasking capabilities. "Exactly correct. Now, why don't you share with us what's really on your mind?"

"Just history and the evolution of war."

Chad snickered at Troy's words said in a rather bored tone. "More like current events I bet." He ducked a wad of paper headed his way and smirked at his best friend since pre-school. "What? It's true. All of us know that girl has set you on edge."

"Yeah man, what's up with that? The first war of the year and you declare it on some chick?" Jason questioned. "I think that's a first."

Ryan twirled his mechanical pencil on the tips of his fingers. "Troy hasn't declared war on a girl actually since, well, never I don't think. Usually, it's the rest of us."

"Yeah dude, what makes her different?"

Sighing, Troy straightened in his seat. "Do you really need me to tell you? Truly?"

"Gentleman, why don't we focus back on pre-calculus?" Theo interjected, not really in the mood to hear something he would have to dutifully forget minutes later. Part of Theo's job was to provide these five students the best education possible while also keeping them isolated from the rest of the academy to a degree, but it was also to be discreet about what went on and what he witnessed, something Theo often found hard. If it wasn't for his family that he was trying to support with this well paying job, he probably would have quit a while ago.

"Theo is right. We don't need to get into the details of this now. This girl seems sensible. She may remove herself from the situation on her own," Zeke suggested, leaning back in his leather office chair, putting his feet up on the desk.

Troy, Zeke, Ryan, Jason, and Chad each had their own desk with a cherry finish that matched each other's and a leather chair with a high back, each set arranged along the perimeter of the room leaving the middle and front of the room open. They had spent majority of their time together at Bolton Academy there together, receiving private tutoring that gave them specialized lessons on what their parents desired but also matched what was happening outside their private tutoring room. Despite the close quarters, instead of their constant being together being too much for them, all five grew closer together for it, something that helped further bond the growing boys beyond their family's stations in life and wealth.

"Maybe," Troy admitted, eyeing his laptop screen again that had a webpage displayed he had been studying. "Gabriella Montez has the perfect record in both academics and extracurricular activities. Perhaps she will do the right thing and just leave."

"Then again, she did impress me as being someone with quite a bit of spirit," Zeke commented. "Why don't you just leave her alone man?"

Scoffing, Troy shook his head. "The number was painted this morning by Zac and a few of the others. There's no going back. It will show weakness."

"He's right man," Chad agreed. "Besides, we never withdraw. Why would we now?"

"It was just a suggestion. I mean, school just started, she's new." Relieved to see Ryan nod his head in agreement meaning Zeke wasn't totally alone in thinking this, Zeke pushed on. "Maybe she could just be talked to as a warning."

"And when did you become a defender of the lower class and minority at this school?"

"I'm just saying Chad. It's a new year and all. Do we really want to start off the year on this negative note per se?"

Troy leaned his elbows on the desk, absently noting that Theo had backed down from trying to teach the lesson and was currently reading some book, before folding his hands together. His eyes scanned the image of the girl on the webpage that accompanied her school records and had to smirk. "You know, she actually is rather beautiful in that natural kind of way."

Dropping his jaw but picking it up moments later, Jason replied, "Dude, are you serious? Are you really going to back down for the first time ever on a war you declared because you think she's beautiful?"

"I didn't say that," Troy immediately answered. "The war is on, there's no question about it. I'm just trying to figure out all the details with Zac Porter so he and his friends can get this just right."

"What are you going to do?" Ryan asked, somehow feeling bad for the girl. "That mastermind of yours always has the dirtiest schemes running loose."

"You're not going to ask me to have my extended family make a sort of hit on her are you? I don't think it's that bad." Although Chad was fully onboard with this war, he didn't think it was quite to the point where he wanted to get his family involved yet. Truth be told, having the mafia like background was a blessing and a curse. No one dared to mess with Chad because of his family connections but it also came with a lot of responsibilities to uphold that image and reputation. "Besides, you know my uncle would stick his nose into this after the mess up last time."

"No shit. Your cousins weren't meant to send that sophomore to the hospital last year, just scare him."

"Hey, he fought back and pulled a gun on them! I think even the court ruled that self-defense."

Troy thought back to the court case and nodded. "Yeah, you're right. Made me remember though why we are no longer going to use them as possible resources for our wars too. That was a onetime thing because that bastard starting flirting with Jason's girl at the time and then we found out he was sleeping with her."

Shuddering at the memory, Jason closed his eyes. "Enough on that. Can we talk about something else?"

"So what is it going to be Troy? Verbal or are you going to launch full on into her?" In truth, Chad was curious as this was Troy's first war declared on a female and he wasn't sure what Troy would pull considering her gender. Each member of P5 had their own style but the end result was always the same, a victory.

The cerulean eyes darted back to the picture of the Hispanic beauty and smiled. "You'll all see tomorrow. I think I've got the perfect thing to make her leave in less than a day."

* * *

After school, Gabriella was dropped off at the coffee shop by Martha, who offered to continue giving her rides if she wanted and which Gabriella accepted. Both were relieved that besides staring and some limited heckling about being the first victim of P5 for the school year that nothing else happened on campus. Between the two of them, Martha seemed more anxious about the idea of tomorrow coming but Gabriella had managed to push it aside, knowing that worrying about the unknown would do her little good.

When she entered the coffee shop, she smiled as she saw Kelsi was already there, tying on her apron. "Hey Kels!"

"Gaby!" Kelsi exclaimed with a smile on her face. She rushed forward and enveloped her best friend in a big hug. "How was your second day? Still intact?"

Gabriella laughed. "So far as I can tell yes but tomorrow may be another story sadly."

Kelsi covered her mouth with a small hand. "Oh Lord, what happened? Come on, let's get you changed and you can tell me all about it."

The two girls walked into the backroom where Gabriella quickly got changed and slid the apron over her head. "Let's just say that there are these wars I guess that P5 likes to declare on those students below them and I'm the lucky first victim of the year. Guess I pissed off their leader Troy just enough yesterday."

"These wars, they aren't like serious or life threatening are they?"

Now there was a thought Gabriella hadn't really considered since this morning. "A bunch of the students said to get out while I could but I don't seriously think it could be life threatening. I mean, I know these guys are the elite at the school and one of their parents owns it but I don't think an administration would allow for such extreme things to occur on the grounds of the academy."

"Just be careful okay?"

"I will, don't worry Kelsi. Come on, we have customers waiting for once!"

Kelsi nodded and let the subject go, following her best friend out of the back and into the front part of the coffee shop, seeing that Gabriella was right and that there were a few customers in line to order. Usually the coffee shop never saw a crowd at any one time since it was in a location that wasn't all that popular as a hangout but they had their regulars and it also gave Gabriella and Kelsi both time to do their homework when no one was around.

Once their shifts were over, Gabriella and Kelsi began their usual walk home together. "How's school going Kelsi? How are our other friends?"

"They're all doing fine. We miss you though Gaby. Although, I think a few of us are jealous that you are getting the education you are now."

"Yeah, but the price to have it may not be worth it. We'll see."

"Your parents are still insisting on you being there?"

Gabriella nodded. "I have a month trial on my hands before they will let me go back to school with you gals. This little war though wasn't a factor last night but I bet that it wouldn't make much of a difference sadly."

After giving Gabriella a sympathetic look, Kelsi said, "Maybe, but you know your parents want only what's best for you as I do. Maybe this war won't be as bad as it's being made out to be. I mean, you are the most liked person I know. Could these guys seriously have that much of a dislike for you already?"

Slipping her arm through Kelsi's, Gabriella leaned her head against her best friend's. "You never know Kels. Besides, you're the one everyone really likes. How's your latest composition coming?"

"It's coming. Do you want to come over this weekend to hear it? I'd love to get your singing to it too to see if it really sounds as good as I think it will. Please?"

"For you, anything," Gabriella returned, smiling at the idea of spending at least an evening of fun with her best friend after their morning and early afternoon shift. Finally, Gabriella had something to look forward to in order to help her get through the rest of the week. What Gabriella didn't know though was that she'd need it desperately the next day, especially with what Troy had planned.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Martha had called Gabriella's home the night before, deeply apologizing but telling Gabriella that she wouldn't be by in the morning to drive her to school because she had a doctor's appointment and would be late going to school due to it. Gabriella had perfectly understood and told Martha not to worry about it, that Gabriella could walk to Bolton Academy again, no big deal, and had truly meant it. Her friend's parting words had made Gabriella freeze a bit though when Martha warned Gabriella not to let her guard down at school the next day but Gabriella had pushed the warning aside for the rest of the night, not seeing the point of worrying about something that could possibly happen that was outside of her control.

As Gabriella neared Bolton Academy though, she found her steps became heavier to make the closer she got, dread slowly seeping into her veins. 'Come on Gabriella, don't be an idiot. What can really happen to you because of this stupid war? It can't be too bad otherwise these jerks would have been stopped by now.'

With that thought comforting her, Gabriella pushed on and readjusted her backpack on her shoulders, marching towards campus with a new purpose in mind, to make it through the day and to not show any weakness in the face of whatever P5, its minions, and especially Troy Bolton threw her way.

After stepping foot on campus and making it to the central quad without running into any students who hassled her, Gabriella began to feel her body physically relax. Sure, there were peers openly staring at her but nothing that made her worry. Of course, she hadn't expected an ambush right before she made it into the building where her first period classroom was.

Gabriella first heard a snicker behind her and whirled around, immediately closing her eyes and mouth before she put her hands out in front of her, trying to ward off the streams of water being shot at her from various water guns. She was frozen in her spot for a few seconds before Gabriella had enough sense to turn around and try to run into the building, getting completely soaked in the process as more water guns appeared, all being wielded by guys she recognized from earlier on in the week as P5's minions.

Running as fast as she could, Gabriella stumbled on the steps and hit the pavement with her right knee, wincing as she felt the burning sensation usually accompanying torn skin, but got up quickly to run inside, not caring that she was dripping wet. Her traction on the smooth floor though was nonexistent and Gabriella found herself lying on her back on the floor within moments, prepared for a more serious dosage of water only to find that no one was around her.

Scurrying to her feet, Gabriella got up and glanced around her, somehow suspicious by the fact that no one was around. One glance outside showed that the army of water guns that had attacked her were all out of sight as well. Feeling the burn again on her knee, Gabriella glanced down and moaned as she saw a deep gash that was currently oozing blood. Reaching into her semi-wet backup, Gabriella grabbed a packet of tissue and pulled one out, dabbing at the cut and wincing as she felt the sting.

Vaguely remembering that the nurse's office was in the administration building next door, Gabriella turned to walk back outside but hesitated, knowing that it would take her having to walk back out in the open to get there, not all that keen on making herself an open target again.

Instead, Gabriella tried recalling in her head where she had seen restroom signs in the previous days and remembered there was one on the first floor. She dabbed at her knee again so the blood wouldn't roll down her leg before she hobbled towards the restroom she remembered.

Before Gabriella could make it that far though, she was attacked with a second wave, having enough sense to close her eyes and look downwards as she saw the start of the white substance being dumped on her from above before quickly scurrying away. Problem was, since she had her eyes closed, Gabriella wasn't able to see where she was going and she soon found herself running into a wall. The force with which she hit it forced her backwards and onto her back on the floor, moaning at the pain while she heard laughter all around her.

Forcing herself to face her attackers, some part of Gabriella wasn't all that surprised to see the same guys from earlier on the week who she had dubbed P5's minions, the trio of girls who had "schooled" her on her first day, and a few others all standing around her, taking pictures and pointing at her as they laughed at her misfortune. Never to be someone's joke for long, Gabriella forced herself to keep silent when she really wanted to groan from the pain she felt in her entire body now, getting up unassisted. Sure her body protested her every moment at this point but she wasn't about to let them know it.

Instead, Gabriella straightened, bending down again only to pick up her backpack from the floor, and then walked back towards the main entrance of the building, knowing instinctively that her terrorists were all now around her and not hiding outside. As she passed the spot where she was attacked in the building, she saw two janitors quickly cleaning up the white mess but identified a few bags with the word "flour" among the mess. She also saw some colored feathers there and glanced down, feeling her anger build as she saw tiny feathers of the same colors coating her uniform and probably her skin just as the flour did.

More than determined, Gabriella left the building and marched over to the administration building, uncaring of the weird looks she was getting from the faculty she passed. Somehow, she wasn't all that surprised when the receptionist showed Gabriella into the vice principal's room right away before closing the door behind her.

While Gabriella waited for the vice principal to materialize, one of the nurses had come in and cleaned Gabriella's knee, not saying much outside of making sure Gabriella didn't have any other injuries. She had returned after leaving the first time with an ice pack for Gabriella's head but after that, Gabriella was left sitting on the towel the receptionist had put on a chair for Gabriella to sit on, feeling more and more ridiculous and sticky as time passed. Thing was, along with those feelings were also the growing feelings of anger towards P5 and their minions.

Just when Gabriella was getting up to leave as she noticed that she had been in the office for almost half an hour without the vice principal, he showed up, trying his best to hide his surprise at seeing the state she was in. "I'm sorry to have kept you waiting Miss Montez."

"Not at all Vice Principal Moran," Gabriella answered, trying to remind herself to be civil and nice to the man despite still seeing red at the moment. "I'm sure you are busy."

"That I am. What can I do for you?"

"Well," Gabriella started, "I'm sure you can tell that my uniform and myself are not exactly clean and polished."

"I can see that. Did you have a cooking accident in one of the cooking classes?"

"No. I was attacked sir by fellow students."

"Attacked? Like how?"

"There were water guns being used against me by multiple people before I made it into the building of my first class. Trying to go to the restroom, I was attacked again but this time with flour and feathers."

"I can see that," Maxwell Moran commented, writing a few things down on a pad of paper. "Can you tell me who witnessed this or who was involved?"

Gabriella opened her mouth to answer but stopped realizing she really didn't know most of their names. "I know them all by faces but I haven't learned their names yet."

Maxwell was slightly surprised as all the students at Bolton Academy seemed to always make it their business to know everyone but he later realized that it was because the girl sitting in front of him was the special scholarship student Lucille and Jack had chosen. "I'm sure you will in time. Why don't you go to the locker room and wash up, I'm sure you can't be comfortable sitting there like that. In the meantime, I will do my best to look into this. Also, since your uniform looks rather destroyed, leave your sizes with the receptionist. By the time you come back after school, I will have a new uniform set available for you so you may as well throw away what you're wearing now. You can wear your PE sweats for the rest of the day."

Uncertain if the vice principal was really genuine but unable to do anything either way, Gabriella nodded before standing up. "Thank you Vice Principal Moran."

When Gabriella walked towards the building where the locker rooms were, also where the pool was, Gabriella noticed that the quad area was full of her peers, an indication that Gabriella had already missed one full period, which would be two after she cleaned up. As tempting as it was to just run home, Gabriella didn't allow herself to give in knowing that was exactly what was more than likely intended.

She stopped dead in her tracks though as she saw him, lounging against a pillar that was in the front of the very building she was heading towards, his four friends of course surrounding him. They were talking together but she felt suddenly bold and even angrier when her eyes met Troy's, a smirk appearing on his face.

Palm itching to slap his smirk off his face, Gabriella found her body straightening as she walked with more purpose towards her destination, her eyes never leaving Troy's while her peripheral vision watched out for any pitfalls.

When she was standing right in front of him, the other pairs of eyes looking at her being completely ignored, Gabriella placed her hands on her hips. "Have a good laugh?"

Chuckling, Troy nodded. "You look like you're ready to be cooked. A piece of meat rolled in batter and ready to be fried. What are you supposed to be? Fried chicken? Isn't it a bit too early for Halloween?"

"I don't know, why don't you tell me since you seem to be pretending to be something you're not every day?"

Zeke smirked while Ryan let out a low whistle. "Damn, this girl is all fire," he commented to Zeke who was next to him in a quiet tone.

Watching the way Troy and Gabriella both glared at each other, Zeke couldn't agree more. "I'd say so. Today is further proof of what I thought already."

Chad threw the two a dirty look that got them both to stop talking before he turned his attention back at the pair who were too focused on each other to notice anyone else around.

After getting over his own shock at the girl in front of him having the guts to say that to his face, Troy scoffed, "And you would know that how? You've been at Bolton Academy for how long? Not even a week? You certainly don't know me though, that much I know. You may think you do based on whatever bits and pieces get floated out there in the media but you don't know me."

Gabriella shrugged, recognizing he had a point. "Granted, you're right. I don't know you just as you don't know me. So I have to ask, was making me look like a chicken ready to be fried as you called me a scare tactic? Or were you insinuating that I was the type of person that would be called a chicken, someone quick to run away?"

His instincts told Troy that this wouldn't be an easy war to win after all. For all intents and purposes, any other girl would have run away from the sight of him knowing that he had put it in motion but not this one. "It's just the start. I warned you fair and square and I know people have been telling you too that we take our wars seriously. Perhaps you should have thought better than messing with me and P5 the other day."

"Well maybe you should have thought better of messing with my friend who was trying to be nice to you idiots despite my understanding of why she would want to especially as I'm being told your behavior you showed towards her the other day is frighteningly normal."

"I was just putting her in her place. I'm sure Marcia understands. It's the law of the land around here."

"Her name is Martha," Gabriella tersely corrected. "And if that's the law of the land here, then Bolton Academy is everything its reputation says it is. Exclusive to the elite and a world of its own. Corrupt too I think was mentioned at one point."

Seeing the opportunity, Troy took a step further while maintaining his gaze with her. "Why don't you run off back to your shit hole of a public school then Gabriella? You're easily the top of your class there and I bet you're missing your best friend who works at that little coffee shop with you too."

Despite the instinct that kicked in to back up, Gabriella stood her ground, forgetting how ridiculous she looked for sure covered in whatever combination was dumped on her. She knew that taking a step back would spell her surrender and that was one thing she wasn't prepared for. "You're right, I should run off and go back to what I know, what I'm comfortable with. That's the easy way out though Troy. To stay within one's comfort zone, with the familiar. The challenge is facing something that isn't so welcoming and that's what I plan on doing. Maybe you should try it some time."

Jason snickered before Troy glanced at him, which shut him up immediately, not to mention the elbow in his side Chad gave him none too discreetly. "You seem to be rather strong in the comebacks, I won't lie. It's not all that surprising either considering you've never gotten lower than a solid A in any of your English classes Gabriella. It seems you are just as well versed outside of the classroom. Let's see if your bite is as big as your bark per se, shall we?"

Pushing aside the uneasy feeling she had knowing that Troy must have had access to her student files somehow and something else, Gabriella squared her shoulders once again. "I guess so because you aren't running me out of here, even if you share your last name with this educational institution. Oh, and one more thing? I think you'd find Troy that people would respect you more for your shitty treatment of people if you actually did things yourself instead of having your henchmen or whatever you want to call it do your dirty work. I sure would have thought better of you, even though it was an attack against me, if it was done with your own hands instead of probably being texted to that leader of the minions of P5. Maybe by the time this war is over, you'll learn what it means to be a real leader with real respect but I won't hold my breath."

With that, Gabriella spun around and entered the building, letting the doors slam behind her, walking briskly until she made it to the locker rooms. She made quick work of stripping and tossing the uniform in the trash after grabbing a fresh towel and getting into a nice, hot shower. Once she was fully under the hot water, she reached for the bath gel container attached to the wall but found herself putting both palms against the cold, tiled wall as her body shook.

No matter what strength she displayed in front of her tormentors, the truth was Gabriella wanted nothing more than to run home and drop from Bolton Academy, scholarship or not. In the end though, she wouldn't. Not only because of her agreement with her family but also because Gabriella also knew what she just said to Troy back there sealed her fate. She couldn't back out now, she couldn't run away. No, she wouldn't dream of giving him that satisfaction but just then, right then, Gabriella allowed herself to feel and release her emotions before washing away all evidence of the first attack in P5's stupid war.

* * *

Zeke for one was more than amused by the fact that Gabriella had managed to have the last word with a guy who was known to shut down people quicker than they could speak. Troy, in all the years Zeke knew him, was always someone who had a razor sharp tongue when you got him pissed off. He was like that at his house with his staff, with the students here at school, even with his friends. The only people he had yet to see Troy act that way with was his parents and for good reason. Those were the two people in the world everyone knew Troy understood he couldn't do that too and get away with it.

'Perhaps though there are now three people he can't be that way with now,' Zeke thought, watching as Troy immediately launched into a rant about the girl who left him behind for once. Each encounter Zeke had with Gabriella only made him more curious as to what she was about and further developed his admiration for her.

"Zeke, what do you think?" Chad asked, pointedly looking at him. "Troy's plan a good one?"

Swearing in his head for not really paying full attention, Zeke shrugged his shoulders. "You know me, I'm not one for these games."

"Then why were you smiling?" Jason questioned, also looking at Zeke.

Ryan saw the fleeting moment of panic on Zeke's face and stepped in. "Look, Zeke has never been the one to declare any war on anyone here. He's a lover and not a fighter. Why would he get involved now?"

Seeing Ryan's point, Jason nodded. "Good point."

Chad though was eyeing Zeke, who seemed normal but felt slightly not totally in line with them at the moment. "Dude, what's on your mind?"

"There's a lot on my mind. Which do you want to know about?"

"What are your thoughts on what's going down between this chick and Troy?"

"It's interesting, not going to lie," Zeke admitted. "She proved today though she's not easy to scare and be intimidated."

Troy nodded. "Exactly why something more drastic than messing up her uniform needs to be done to get rid of her. I truthfully found it a nice change to have that little banter, but I can't have her rebellion set the path for everyone else to follow. You know we can't have that."

"More like you don't like her having the last word Troy," Jason teased, chuckling with Ryan and Zeke. "I'm amazed you let her."

Clenching his jaw, Troy spat, "What did you expect me to do? She turned and walked away! I was shocked by that alone dude!"

Chad too agreed. "She's got guts, I'll give her that. So Troy, what are you thinking of next?"

Weighing out the different ideas he had been thinking of, Troy shrugged. "I need some more time to think. You're all right, she's tougher than I'd expect a girl, and a new girl at that who is on a scholarship, to be. Her records don't show she's ever been in any type of administrative trouble or with the law. She's got to have a limit to what she can take."

"Just don't take it too far," Zeke couldn't but help to advise, adding in something else no one had mentioned yet to their best friend. "If your parents find out that you've been engaging in war tactics with their chosen scholarship student, it may not go over so well Troy."

"Shit, I totally didn't think of that. Brett for sure would be all over your ass if your parents found out about this and knew it was being done at our hands," Chad stated, already wincing at the thought of what would happen to them. The only people in the world that could touch a P5 member were their parents with the exception of Zeke, whose parents had died when he was young. Everyone else had either both parents or one or the other still around to keep an eye on them, granted they didn't often interfere with the group of friends' lives.

Troy though waved a hand at this sobering thought. "They'll never know. There's strategy to having Zac and his boys do it. Besides, my parents are well aware of what goes on here. You all know that. They just turn a blind eye to our mischief like all the other parents and guardians. In fact, I bet knowing my parents they see it as training for taking over the business no doubt."

"Now there's a scary idea, you actually coming into a power position of Bolton Enterprises." Ryan dodged Troy's punch just enough to get it barely grazing his upper arm. "Hey, it's the truth! We're all not ready for that, to take over the businesses our families expect us to."

"Well you have a lovely twin who can help you with it at least," Zeke pointed out. "Technically, isn't she older?"

"Yup, she is, but do you really think Sharpay is going to return from her modeling career to run a business? Come on Zeke, you know her almost as well as I do. No way, no how. That girl is gone, long gone."

"Yeah, gone," Zeke echoed, looking away from Ryan to look out into the quad. In truth, Zeke had felt down for days after Sharpay first left to pursue her modeling career but had tried to keep himself satisfied with the occasional phone calls and emails. She had grown up the sixth member of their group of friends even though she was the only girl and had held her own every single moment of it. In fact, Gabriella's spirit reminded him of Sharpay in some ways but he wasn't about to voice that to his friends.

Troy tilted his head and studied Zeke's profile. "You're still hung up on her aren't you? I told you man even back when she left that you should have told her how you feel!"

Shaking his head, Zeke turned his attention back on Troy. "No, it wouldn't have been fair to her. Just leave it alone."

Accepting Zeke's statement, Troy did let it go. It was general knowledge among the five that Zeke had this long-standing crush on Ryan's twin but they had made sure to not let Sharpay know. They all understood this was Zeke's bit to tell her and so they had kept mum, even Ryan. "I guess we better head back in or Theo is going to blow a gasket for how long we've been gone."

Four heads nodded in agreement before they made their way back to the building where their private tutoring room and tutor waited for them, all prepared for the rest of their school day and already thinking of what they were going to do that night as soon as Theo released them for the day. Of all five though, there were two minds that were also occupied by other thoughts, differing in opinion but both thinking of a certain brunette.

* * *

"I still can't believe that all happened to you this morning. I'm so sorry Gabriella I wasn't there," Martha apologized, walking alongside Gabriella after school. "I knew I should have begged my mom to change the appointment."

Gabriella shook her head as they entered the administration building, ignoring all the strange and knowing looks she got from random students as they passed them. "You being there wouldn't have helped. They were set on making a fool of me and they did to a degree but they haven't been declared the winner yet and they won't be."

"At least the school is replacing your uniform. I know you hated being in those sweats all day."

"That and my teachers surprisingly understood when I double backed at lunch and asked for work that I missed in the first two periods of the day. It was odd, none of them commented on what happened to me even after my explanation but were more than accommodating."

Martha knew the answer to that but didn't want to say anything to Gabriella as they reached their destination. Instead, she stood to the side as the receptionist gave Gabriella two sets of new uniforms followed by a short exchange leading Gabriella to walk into Vice Principal Moran's office. Having nothing else to do, Martha took a seat and waited for her friend to come back out.

"Ah, I see you got your uniforms, excellent. Is there anything else you need Miss Montez?" Maxwell asked as he glanced up and saw the young girl standing in front of his desk.

"Umm," Gabriella nervously began. "I was actually wondering if you were able to find out anything about what happened to me today."

Blinking, Maxwell leaned back in his chair as he put his fingers together while he surveyed Gabriella. "I did look into the matter but nobody saw anything, I'm sorry."

Gabriella dropped the uniforms in her arms and ignored them as they hit the floor. "Wait, did I just hear you say that no one saw anything? You've got to be kidding me! There were all those students doing things and even watching! The janitors had to clean it up!"

Shaking his head, Maxwell said, "I interviewed all the janitors who work that building as well as faculty who could have seen anything and some kids who have first period there and no one recalls anything, I'm sorry."

The word shocked didn't even begin to describe the way Gabriella felt right then. "You mean to tell me that no one is admitting they saw anything?"

"I'm saying that when I asked about it, and I really did investigate this, that no one can recall cleaning anything up or witnessing anything. Whether or not they are covering something up, I'm not sure and will never really know to be honest Miss Montez."

"But you saw me! It's not like I did that to myself! Why would I do that?"

Seeing Gabriella getting increasingly excitable made Maxwell lean forward as he said, "Please, calm down Miss Montez. I am not accusing you of anything of the sort but I have no witnesses and you don't know the names of the students involved. Even if you picked their names out by looking in a yearbook, without witnesses who are willing to step forward, I can't do anything unfortunately, I'm sorry."

Feeling more than outraged, Gabriella failed at trying to contain it. "So you mean to tell me that I was attacked, on campus, and nothing is going to be done about it? I had to get a new uniform and wear sweats around campus all day because of it. I bled because of it!"

"I understand that, I do. I'll interview more students tomorrow but if I can't get anyone whose story matches yours, I have to warn you ahead of time I won't be able to do anything. My apologies Miss Montez."

Gabriella opened her mouth to say more but snapped it shut, realizing there was no real use to it. "Thank you for your time."

With that Gabriella scooped up the uniforms from the floor and stalked out of the office, bristling at the fact that she now knew this craziness with P5 was not only known to everyone on campus but that people were so scared of P5, even the faculty, that they claimed ignorance to their bullying done via other people even. She was so upset that she barely took notice of Martha, who got up from a chair and walked with her out of the office and then out of the building together.

It was when Gabriella came to a complete stop and dragged a deep breath in of fresh air that she acknowledged her friend. "Sorry, I'm just pissed off at the moment."

Martha nodded her understanding. "He said there was nothing to be done and that no one saw anything, right?"

Gabriella's anger only intensified as she realized that Martha had already expected this. "Yes, exactly right."

Sadly, Martha explained, "That's how it has been since as long as P5 has started these since their fifth grade. It started with some boy in their grade making a crack about Troy's family and escalated from there."

"And what happens to these targets? To the people declared war on?"

Hesitating for a few moments, Martha finally said, "They all leave Gabriella. The war never stops until the person leaves and usually thoroughly humiliated."

All of Gabriella's secret hopes that this would all go away vanished when she heard Martha's words. She even felt her shoulder slump forward in defeat. "And I'm their latest play toy, great."

"I'm not going to lie to you Gabriella, the prospects aren't good. Then again, there's something different about you that makes me think you won't run off because of this."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yup," Martha replied. "From the moment you stepped in to help me out this week, I knew there was something different about you. No one else here at Bolton Academy would have done what you did. You'll make it through this."

"Glad you think so." Gabriella gave Martha a half smile. "Part of me honestly wants to just leave and forget I ever heard of Bolton Academy especially knowing now that this place is as corrupt as it really is. P5 shouldn't get to rule the school like their own little kingdom but it appears they do. I've never backed down from anything though, it's not in my nature, you're right. I guess I'll just have to keep my guard up and hope for the best that they will forget all about me."

"I don't think that's likely though Gabriella."

Already knowing this herself, Gabriella agreed. "I know but one can hope. Come on Martha, let's go home. Name calling I can handle, pranks I can handle too. They won't do anything to physically harm me though, right?"

Martha glanced down at Gabriella's bandaged knee. "Not that I know of but you have already scraped your knee."

"Yeah but that was also my own clumsiness. Guess it's one day at a time but for now, I'm done worrying about it. I know what I'm dealing with, both with them, their henchmen, and the administration of this school and that's half the battle. Are you sure you want to remain my friend though?"

Martha hooked her arm through Gabriella's and smiled down at the shorter girl. "I wouldn't dream of anything else Gabriella. Come on, let's go and get you to work."

Relieved to have someone at least in her corner, Gabriella walked with Martha to the parking lot and left Bolton Academy behind her, completely unaware of someone else who had overheard and seen her exchange with Martha, someone who was slowly also becoming a fan of sorts of her too.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Yep, that's right, after school. Good deal man."

Zeke could only shake his head as he heard the end of Troy's latest phone call with the guys who basically did his bidding like Troy was a codified prince instead of a rich student going to a school his parents happened to own among other things. "You're not letting up are you?"

Scoffing, Troy gave Zeke a disbelieving look before putting his feet on his desk as he leaned back in his chair. It was still early and their private room was empty except for the two of them plus Chad. "Would you let up when your reputation, something you've worked years on, was on the line?"

"Dude is more burned she had the last word," Chad revealed from his desk where he was concentrating on spinning a basketball on his finger. "Chick should know no one gets away with that with anyone in P5."

In response, Zeke shook his head. "I swear I never will ever understand this obsession you guys have with these wars."

Troy eyed his close friend, a strange look in his eyes. "You never have before, why try to now?"

"Just so I know what's going on around me. You do know that Theo regularly talks to Brett, right?"

"Yeah, so?"

"I'm just reminding you to be careful. I was thinking last night and if your parents do find out about this thing between you and Gabriella, especially considering what the image they are trying to create with this scholarship is, they may not turn a blind eye on it."

Chad lost control of the basketball he was spinning but managed to recover it before it rolled it away, putting it on the desk in front of him and placing his chin on top of it, looking at his two friends. "Don't you think they'd be more upset if Troy didn't take care of this little girl? Our parents keep harping on us about being strong, being leaders. I personally think this war is even more important than the others because defeat would spell out a different world."

This caught Troy's attention. "What do you mean Chad?"

"Can you imagine it?" Chad straightened, leaning back in his chair after he was certain the basketball wouldn't roll off the desk. "A campus where people actually mingled? Who had no regard for us, what we are?"

"What's wrong with that?" Zeke questioned, leaning his elbows on the desk. "It's not like there's something that really makes us different from most of the rest of this school. They all come from influential, rich families for the most part."

"Umm, dude, that's even more reason! Maybe the wealth is somewhere in the same ballpark but we have their respect. They listen to us, they copy our trends. That will all stop if they realize that there's actual rebels in the midst of Bolton Academy. Also have to remember that there is a small percentage who is a great deal lower in class and wealth than majority too, example the scholarship chick."

"You mean Gabriella? She does have a name."

Rolling his eyes in response, Chad said, "Yeah, I know, but since when did she become important enough for this group to really be addressing her as such? I know she's Troy's target and all but since you aren't into the war, why does her name stick out for you?"

There was silence for a few moments while Troy and Chad both watched Zeke gather his thoughts. Neither of them quite got why Zeke noticed Gabriella of all the girls at Bolton Academy and the area. In fact, as Chad thought about it, he realized Zeke had said her name more times than any other girl's name in the span of them knowing him, with the exception of Sharpay, in such a small amount of time.

"It's less common and I'm not going to lie," Zeke finally replied, feeling increasingly more uncomfortable as Troy seemed to stare at him that much more. "Her spirit has caught my attention. No matter whether you are focused on war with her or not, you have to admit that the girl has more courage than many at our school, regardless of social standing."

"True," Chad admitted. "But so what? That means shit to me but that she's just a little harder to take down."

"Actually, thinking about it now, and since we're all being honest, her spirit and courage are admirable. Chad is right though, as far as I'm concerned, those traits only make it tougher to win this war but I will win it and get even more satisfaction out of it because of her resistance. It'll be one for the books." Troy smirked as he glanced at his now open laptop at the picture of the brunette he had in his "war" files, which was currently open. "This is definitely going to be memorable for all of us, mark my words."

* * *

After the school day was over, Gabriella and Martha gathered their things but slowed on the path as one way led to the parking lot where Martha's car was parked and the other towards the building where the swimming pool was.

"Are you sure you don't want me to stay and give you a ride home?" Martha asked again, feeling more than guilty at just the idea of her new friend having to deal with riding the bus. "I don't mind."

Gabriella smiled, reaching forward and giving Martha a big hug. "I know you don't and that means a lot, truly. I just, with everything that's been going on and still being really new to this place, I want to just take the time to unwind. I haven't gotten to do it in a while and since I'm ahead in homework and off tonight, it's the best time."

"IE, you don't want anyone around to bother your peace?"

"More like I just need time to think. I'm sorry Martha, I don't mean to be a total bitch and push you away or anything."

Martha waved her hand at the mere idea of Gabriella being any such thing. "Please, you? A bitch for wanting to think? What the hell must you think of the rest of us here for being far worse than that?"

"I don't think I've labeled anyone with that nickname yet but I have a feeling that it will never be you Martha. I better go so I can maximize my time before having to go home to cook."

"Sure. Call me after dinner and let me know how your thinking sessions went?"

"Deal. Later Martha!"

"Bye!"

Going her own way, Gabriella shifted her bag on her shoulders as she walked, enjoying the fresh air and sense of peace she was already finding. 'Nothing like floating and swimming though to take it to the next level.'

Once she was inside the locker room, Gabriella quickly changed, putting all of her belongings in the locker and locking it before heading to the beautifully clear pool. The first few times she had swam here, there hadn't been anyone else around either, but she was truly in awe of the elegance of a school pool. At her last school, well, it was barely a shadow of what this place was with all of its elegance and perfect upkeep despite the limited use.

At the pool at her old school, there were visible cracks in the surrounding paved area around the pool, and the concrete of the pool itself had its own problems with large cracks going up the sides as well. The outside air too always made getting into and out of the lukewarm water a difficult task in itself. Since the pool was used for PE, the maintenance team always poured more chlorine in than necessary to attempt to keep the pool water sanitary. This was a good thing except that sometimes it was just too strong, making the swimmers on the team sometimes sick as a result of the surrounding air and smell.

Here, at Bolton Academy's pool, there were none of these worries. The pool and surrounding area were both smooth and well held together. The chlorine level, Gabriella guessed, seemed to be constantly normal and the pool water was always warm but not hot or cold in the extreme. The clarity of the pool water alone was remarkable to Gabriella because her old school's water, as heavily chlorinated as it was, was also subject to many foreign objects floating in the pool from tree leaves, bugs, to trash.

The Bolton Academy's pool being indoors too was a big plus and made Gabriella that much more comfortable to be swimming there. It provided a sense of safety instead of being out in the open, something that was rare on campus for her. The safety too of having sturdy equipment like the diving boards and stairs was also a big thing. In all, Gabriella had finally found her silver lining of being forced to stay at Bolton Academy, even if it was for a trial she was enduring for her family's sake at this point.

As soon as she felt the water fully welcome her as she dove in from one of the diving blocks at one end of the pool, Gabriella felt the safety, the peace, rush over her and held onto it tight throughout her workout. True, Gabriella pushed herself hard as she continued doing laps back and forth in the pool but there was something about her state of mind as she did it that helped her mindset, her soul, relax despite the intense workout.

Once she pushed herself just a little over her limits, Gabriella dragged herself out of the pool and grabbed the Bolton Academy towel on a chair nearby, running it over her body as she dried it. Wrapping the towel around her body once she was done, she slipped on her slippers and grabbed her key that had been wrapped in the middle of the towel and made her way back to the locker room feeling much better about everything in that moment.

Making her way to her locker, Gabriella noted the silence and realized as she made her way down the rows of locker that no one else was there. Oddly, instead of feeling scared as some other girls would be in that situation, Gabriella found herself content, realizing that she was more discomforted by other Bolton Academy students being around than not being there at all considering what had happened to her since attending the school.

That contentment though cracked as Gabriella slipped the key to her locker in the lock and turned it, hearing heavy footsteps coming her way. Feeling her heart racing, Gabriella gave up unlocking her locker and instead poked her head out of her row of lockers, looking down the hall both ways and seeing no one there.

"Hello? Anyone there?"

Silence greeted her, this time not being a comfort at all. Deciding to just grab her clothes and go, forgoing her usual shower, Gabriella went back to the locker and opened it with her heart beating loudly in her ears while her stomach tightened into impossible knots.

Just after she pulled on a pair of sweats and was about to pull on her t-shirt Gabriella felt a presence behind her before a hand clamped down, quieting the immediate scream she let out. In response her body was dragged flush against her attacker's while she heard male laughter nearby, unable to see who they were, unable to move, all but paralyzed by fear and held captive all at the same time.

"If you know what's good for you bitch, you'll stop screaming and listen well…"

* * *

"You know, your squash game could use some work Zeke," Ryan kidded as he walked down the hall with Zeke keeping pace. "I need some real competition!"

"Hey, you're lucky I even agree to try playing with you. None of the others will so lay off," Zeke replied, chuckling as he saw his point was well received by his friend. "Not my fault either you just happen to excel in it. I'll take you on the basketball court any day."

"Yeah, I know. Guess maybe that's why I like squash so much."

"Why's that?"

"Little competition from my friends. Something I easily beat all of you at. It's a nice change considering the many times I get my butt handed to me on the basketball court. We're equals at baseball at least."

"True," Zeke agreed as they neared the locker room. He paused from following Ryan in when they reached it though when he heard his cell ring, pulling it out and feeling a warm flush at just the sight of the name on the caller ID.

Ryan noticed and glanced down too, laughing as he saw his twin's name there. "Better answer it Baylor. She's not one to really leave nice messages if you don't pick up. I'll wait for you inside."

Nodding his head, Zeke flipped open the phone and walked a few yards down the hallway towards the girls' locker room as he answered the call. "Hey, Sharpay, how are you?"

"I'd be fabulous if it wasn't for this insomnia. How's my favorite P5 member?"

"Ryan is doing good. He just finished annihilating me at squash yet again." Zeke smiled in response to Sharpay's giggle. "Yeah, some things don't change."

Once Sharpay had control over her laughter, she replied, "Clearly. I actually meant you though. What's new?"

"Oh, nothing much. Just same old school stuff."

"Yeah? Ryan mentioned something about a war already. What was Troy thinking starting one on a girl?"

Zeke rolled his eyes, leaning back against the wall next to the girls' locker room now. "Got me. They all think I'm crazy because I don't get it either but she's hardly deserving of this and he's pissed cause his first attack only made her stronger."

"How I do not miss being part of that group. True I liked the popularity but before P5 was around, when it was P5 plus an extension, namely me, I just remember hating the politics. Then look what I do. I get myself in a career that's all about politics."

Chuckling, he shook his head. "That's true. How is that going by the way? Doing well with all your numerous modeling shoots and shows?" Zeke made an active effort to keep his voice neutral, not wanting to even touch the subject of the rumor he saw the other night of Sharpay dating some hot British actor. Perhaps his crush wasn't obvious but that didn't stop him from getting stung by the knowledge that Sharpay was dating someone deemed to be one of Britain's hottest celebrities at the moment. "I bet you're loving all the fashion you're surrounded by still."

"You know me too well and yes, everything has been wonderful…"

Zeke lost some of what Sharpay way saying when he heard a loud noise accompanied by voices from inside the girls' locker room. 'That's funny, no one usually is around at a time like this after school.'

He was ready to dismiss it and give Sharpay his undivided attention again when he felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up as he heard a brief but definite scream. "Sharpay, I gotta go. I'll call you later."

Without waiting for her reply, Zeke slipped his phone back into his pocket and slowly opened the door, unsure of what was really compelling him to investigate and venture into a place he knew he really shouldn't be. There was another loud commotion and Zeke's uneasiness of being in a forbidden was forgotten as something took over, compelling him to rush towards the sounds.

What he found was something he was far from prepared for. "ZAC! What the hell are you doing?"

It took a moment, but the other guy eventually returned Zeke's gaze, surprised when he saw the disbelief there on Zeke's face. "I was sent to teach this lowlife a lesson," Zac answered, his tone communicating that was the only reason why he was here, would be helping to pin down the brunette whose wet hair was covering her face while she laid frozen on the ground.

In a flash though, Zeke watched as the girl managed to free one of her legs left unrestrained and landed a solid blow to Zac's head, knocking him back. For a moment, he thought the girl was going to get free on her own before Zac's friends realized what was going on and quickly rearranged themselves so all her limbs were pinned down while Zac recovered. Once he had, before Zeke could do anything, Zac slapped her face, the mere sound of the slap making Zeke wince. The quick intake of breath he had following had nothing to do with the slap itself but the realization of who the girl was.

"Enough, back off you guys!"

The command was heard loud and clear by Zac's friends, although Zac himself stayed on the ground, pinning Gabriella's shoulders to the ground. "I'm just following orders man, you understand, we all are. She clearly doesn't learn from silly things like what we did the other day. She needs a sterner lesson on respect around this school."

Seeing Zac was not going to back off like his buddies, Zeke decided to take matters in his hands before it got one step further. Quickly, he advanced on the pair and grabbed Zac by the collar, shoving him up against a set of lockers, taking private satisfaction in seeing Zac wince from the impact. "I think if anyone here needs a lesson about respect, it's you. I told you to back off, you back off."

"But Zeke," Zac tried protesting, shutting up as Zeke glared at him again.

"No argument. It was Troy who set this up, right? Or is there a new dark lord you idiots answer to?"

"I can't say." The words may have been spoken but Zeke found the only confirmation he needed as to the identity of the mastermind behind this in Zac's eyes.

"Get lost, now!"

When Zeke released Zac only to shove him to get going, Zac and his friends didn't have to be told twice and quickly left, leaving Zeke with Gabriella. It was then when the danger was gone that Zeke heard the quiet whimpering and looked down to see Gabriella now curled in a fetal like position, trying her best not to outright sob while warily looking back at him.

Putting his hands out, much like he would when approaching an animal to communicate he meant no harm, Zeke slowly approached her and winced again when she quickly backed away from him, hitting her back against the wall. "Don't come near me!"

"Look, I'm sorry about that. These things sometimes get way out of control."

"What? They violated your instructions to torment me to another level?" The words had a bite and a sting Zeke hadn't expected. "Were they supposed to actually rape me?"

"No, at least I don't think so. Troy would never go that far." Even as he said that though, Zeke found that he was actually wondering if he even believed it. 'Of course I do, Troy isn't that big of an asshole. Then why is there a doubt in your mind even as you say this to her?'

There was silence while he stood there patiently waiting for Gabriella to gather herself together, both staying where they were. Finally, after catching her breath again, Gabriella looked up at Zeke from where she now sat on the ground. "How do I even know you weren't part of this? That this moment, you saving me, wasn't planned?"

"Because it wasn't," Zeke truthfully replied. "However, being in your shoes, I wouldn't believe me even with what I just said. Look, I just want to make sure you're okay. I can see you're shaken and I'd like to give you a ride home to make sure you get there safely. I don't know what else those idiots could be planning at the moment, I'll be honest."

Gabriella shivered again at the memory of moments ago, being pinned thrown onto the ground and then pinned there with four guys all laughing and restraining her. She knew for a fact she'd have bruises in the morning. While she regarded Zeke though, she couldn't help but remember what she thought of him before this afternoon, how she had already seen how very different he was from Troy and the rest of his friends. Something in her gut told her that Zeke was okay and truly didn't mean her any harm. "Why should I trust you? You could be using me to find out where I live so your minions could attack me there too."

With a sigh, Zeke leaned his shoulder against the pair of lockers that were a tiny bit dented from where he had shoved Zac and thought of what to say in a way that wouldn't scare her too much. "I know how Troy and the others have treated you. I know the less than warm welcome you've received since you stuck up for your friend. Just know that your spirit and strength you've shown, it's earned my respect and in return, I'd like to earn your trust. This isn't a setup on my part, far from it. Ask anyone on campus and they'll tell you these wars aren't my style."

"Then why go along with it?"

Zeke gave her a dry smile. "Million dollar question. One day Gabriella I'll answer you too but not now. So what do you say? Will you let me have peace of mind by escorting you home? How are you feeling by the way? Are you bleeding or have any bodily trauma?"

Gabriella shook her head. "No, I'm fine." What she didn't say was that she acknowledged that if Zeke hadn't shown up, she would have been far from fine considering the actions of the idiots moments before. "Just some bruising I think."

"I'm sorry there's even that." The sincerity in Zeke's voice made Gabriella tilt her head as she studied him further. When he extended a hand to help her up, Gabriella found herself actually taking it, pushing away the ugliness of Zac and his friends while she stared at Zeke and the gentle smile on his face. "Are you sure you're okay though?"

"Yeah, just fine. I'm not about to let some little boys ruin me."

Hearing her spirited words again made Zeke smile. "Glad to hear it. You know Gabriella, you are one tough cookie. I've got to hand it to you. Not many girls would bounce back as you have just now let alone faced off with Troy Bolton like he wasn't the heir to a large business empire. Instead, most of them swoon and swear to do anything that comes out of his mouth. I'm glad you're different."

After Gabriella slipped her shirt on, she looked back at Zeke. "Is that a good thing?"

"Definitely a good thing, a great thing," he answered, relieved to see her smile even slightly back at him as she put her bag on her shoulder. "Ready to go?"

"Sure."

When they walked out of the locker room, Zeke wasn't all that surprised to see Ryan there, waiting for him. "Hey Zeke, was beginning to wonder what happened. Wait, did I just see you come out of the girls' locker room?"

Zeke knew Ryan's surprise was not only about where he had been but also who was by his side. "Yeah, let's not talk about it now. I'm going to give Gabriella a ride home. I'll meet you at the loft?"

"Yeah, sure," Ryan replied, not knowing what else to say as Gabriella walked by him, not meeting his eyes, something a bit unusual for the girl. "See you man."

After Zeke had successfully dropped Gabriella off at the apartment complex she lived in, walking her to the gate that led into the courtyard, not wanting to push his presence onto her any more than was needed, he found that the anger he kept from boiling over before when she was with him was reignited as he drove to the loft. The loft was a place in the city where he, Ryan, Jason, Chad, and Troy shared as a place to hang out without servants and family watching, used every once in a while for a party or a dalliance with a girl. It was a place where Zeke knew he'd see not only Ryan but he'd find Troy.

Not wasting any time when he pulled into a parking spot, he quickly got out and took the steps two at a time until he reached the loft, slipping his key in and not being surprised by the laughter and music filling the room. After a quick sweep of the room Zeke saw Troy throwing darts with Jason and blindly moved towards them, unaware of the alarmed looks of the others in the room as he advanced.

Before he knew it, his hands held Troy's shirt much like they had Zac's earlier while he glared at his close friend. "What the hell were you thinking? Are you so fucking twisted now?"

Troy dropped the darts from his hands, distantly hearing the sound of them dropping, before using his now free hands to break Zeke's grip on him. "What are you talking about? What has you so pissed off?"

"You! You and this idiotic war! I never thought you'd sink this low Troy!"

"What the hell are you talking about?" Troy demanded, straightening his shirt but never once looking away from Zeke.

"Zac! Zac and the other idiots who do your bidding! How could you send them to do that to her? You've gone too far this time Troy, too damn far!"

Seeing Zeke take a step forward again towards Troy, Jason quickly stepped in between them, gently pushing Zeke back while keeping a firm hold on him. "Zeke, what happened? Maybe you and Troy know but I don't think any of us do besides you two."

Swallowing another round of harsh words, Zeke glared at Troy once more before looking at Jason and then Chad and Ryan and then back at Jason before glaring at Troy again. "He sent Zac and team to rape Gabriella!"

After a few beats of silence, Ryan spoke up. "Troy, that's can't be true, can it? Please tell us that's not true!"

"It's not," Troy got out, trying to shake himself out of the state of shock he was in. "I didn't order anything like that." When Zeke only glared at him more, Troy could tell his friend didn't believe a word he was saying. "Look, I did send Zac and his friends after Gabriella after school, you know I did, you were there when I was arranging it. They were just supposed to spook her, get her to leave."

"But rape Troy? That's extreme, even for you!" Zeke argued, finding it odd how unsure he was of what to believe this time concerning his friend. It was in the silence that followed though that Zeke noticed how pale his friend had become, how the usual air of cockiness was absent. "You really didn't know they'd go that far, did you?"

Troy returned Zeke's gaze with a steady one of his own as he said, "No, I didn't." After a few beats, he asked, "Is she okay? They didn't actually… uh…"

"No, they didn't rape her," Zeke revealed, intrigued by the look of relief that washed over Troy's face. "No thanks to you though. Come on Troy, these games have to stop. This girl doesn't deserve this torture, especially after today."

"She did disgrace Troy though," Chad piped up, getting a glare from both Zeke and Ryan. "It's true!"

"Yeah, but having the guts to face off with him doesn't warrant any attack that could lead to her being raped," Ryan pointed out. "Are you suggesting that for sticking up for her friend she should get raped Chad?"

Chad scoffed. "Of course not, but I'm just saying that I understand what Troy's motives are. These wars are intense, no lie."

"Well this is one that I think has gone too far," Zeke stated, looking from Chad and back now at Troy. "Please Troy, let it go."

Troy seriously contemplated it, feeling like shit that something like today could have spiraled into so dark and serious as rape without him even knowing it. 'Wait until I get my hands on Zac and those guys,' he thought before turning his mind to Zeke's plea. "Maybe it is time. After what happened today especially, but won't that send the wrong message to the school?"

"What message do you think they'll get if something really does happen next time? What if next time, I'm not there to stop those morons from doing something worse?"

Something clicked in Troy's brain and he felt his eyes narrow on his close friend. "Zeke, what were you doing there anyway? Have you started crushing on this girl?"

"What? No!" Zeke sighed internally as it became clear that he was being misunderstood again. "I was talking on the phone with Sharpay when I heard the commotion and went to investigate. I don't have to be crushing on Gabriella to want this war to end Troy. I'm thinking of everyone, not just her. Can you imagine what will happen if something does go down like it would have if I hadn't been there, in time?"

"He has a point," Ryan agreed. "As we all get told, we don't only represent ourselves but our families in what we do. The curse for being born into what we have been."

Troy though felt for sure there was some other factor playing into Zeke's concern but Troy let it go, realizing himself that continuing the war through Zac and his friends was just wrong all over. In fact, Troy was so pissed off with them that he probably would never use them again. "No more use of Zac and his friends, I promise."

Zeke was aware that Troy hadn't promised to call the war off but hearing him promise to at least reign Zac and his friends in was a good start. "Good for you Troy. Did you really not have an inkling that they would do this today?"

"Not at all but don't worry, they won't go unpunished." That was one statement Troy made that he knew he'd follow up on no matter what. As much as he wouldn't admit it even to his closest friends, he was rocked by the revelation Zeke had given him tonight and was feeling more guilty than he would let on. Troy knew though that he would take care of it tomorrow and also find a way to balance what he knew had to be done with what wouldn't label him as a pushover that could be walked all over. As silly as it may be to even some of his friends in the room with him now, Troy's reputation was a valuable asset and showing any weakness, no matter to who or over what, was a liability he had been taught was unacceptable. In that moment, Troy realized that he had to be the one to finish the war but only after taking care of some business first.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Troy walked around the small group of guys gathered in front of him, each wearing a Bolton Academy uniform – plaid skirt and white collared shirt. He had found it rather easy to find a replacement for Zac and his team the night before, one that knew how to stay within the boundaries. It was him, Ron Ingalls, with his three friends, who directly told Zac and his friends of this early meeting on the Bolton Academy grounds.

"Zac, it has come to my attention that you've been putting your own spin on my war, something that's a big no-no." Troy paused in front of Zac, looking the other guy in the eyes to see if he dared deny it, which he didn't. "Good, I'm glad there are no lies between us. You must know that there will be punishment for what you did yesterday."

"Permission to speak sir," Zac got out, hating the situation but knowing that he and his friends were already in trouble. It was fun running the battles for P5 but being on the other side, well, it was a bitch.

"What is it Zac? Don't think about lying to me now either boy."

Zac shook his head, swallowing his sudden nerves as he met Troy's gaze. "I wouldn't dream of it. Your orders, with all due respect, were to scare that girl, was it not?"

"That girl has a name Zac, Gabriella, and you'd do well to remember it."

A bit surprised by Troy's words but not in any position to say anything about it, Zac nodded. "Gabriella, right. That was what you wanted us to do, what you ordered us to do, right?"

Troy nodded, being completely honest. "Yes, it was the order, to scare her. Thing that I don't get though here is how you and your buddies interpreted scare as rape. Care to explain that?"

The silence among Zac and his friends was heavy, crackling with Troy's anger and clear displeasure. Zac, being the natural leader of the group, knew it was on him to explain what happened and try to minimize retribution. He already had to endure standing in the middle of the quad at Bolton Academy in a girl's uniform. There was no desire in him to want to find out what further punishments Troy could throw their way, especially at the hands of a junior like Ron.

"Sir, you ordered us to scare Gabriella, enough to make her to want to leave Bolton Academy. We did not rape her, regardless of what she may have run and told you. It's not within our style to do that sir."

"Then what did you intend then Zac? If Zeke had not shown up when he had, hearing her distress call, what would you have done?"

"Intimidation was the name of the game. She's lying to you. Since when do you listen to the person war is declared on?"

Chad, who had been standing on the sidelines in silence, along with Zeke, Jason, and Ryan, spoke up against the show of attitude. "Maybe you forget Zac but you aren't in power here. In fact, you have zero influence. Perhaps you need a reminder of that and what it means to be on the losing side of these wars."

Zac swallowed, seeing too easily now how he had stumbled over the very same line he was trying not to cross. "No sir, I'm sorry. I was out of line."

Troy put a hand up, silencing Chad's next words, not even looking at his best friends or the rest of the group. No, his entire focus was on Zac. "Do you honestly think that girl you almost raped would buckle and come running to me after that? All this time I've had you executing the battles for me, what have I asked you to do? Study her, get to know her, find her weakness. Now I know why everything has been so ineffective. You don't fucking even know Gabriella do you?"

Smothering any possible smart retort that popped onto his tongue to blurt, Zac shook his head. "No sir, I failed you sir."

Satisfied that Zac was back in his place, Troy nodded, clasping his hands behind his back as he began walking around the small group of guys, all of who had horrible legs for those uniform skirts. "You see boys, if you had bothered with the assignment, you would know by now that Gabriella Montez has more strength in her spirit than all of you put together. That's why she's a challenge."

"If I may, sir, that is why we had to go to extremes," Zac grounded out, not knowing what the consequences would be but knowing he had to say something. "She doesn't scare easily and the goal was to get her out of this school, for you to win the war, no matter the cost!"

Before Zac could blink, Troy was upon him, his hands fisted in Zac's shirt, faces mere inches apart. "Don't you dare talk to me about war and what the costs of war are! We are the ones who rule the wars, we are the ones that call the shots, not you, never you! In no way, shape, or form, were you ordered to rape Gabriella, no matter what! The fact that you even think that was okay to do to win this war, it sickens me Zac. There are rules and I thought you knew them all but apparently not."

Troy knew his yelling was gathering attention but he didn't bother looking away because in some ways, yes, he did want the focus to be on this group, to make them all look like fools. He released Zac with a sudden movement, causing Zac to stumble back in line with his friends, barely managing to not fall on his butt.

"From this day forward, all of you are done, dead to P5 and dead to the rest of the school."

For the first time that morning, Chad and Jason joined Troy in a smile that sent shivers of fear running through the small group of guys. Chad even went as far as rubbing his hands together, anxious to start a new war, waiting for Troy's prompt that came soon after. "Boys, what should we do about these rule breakers?"

"I think we show them why rules are put into place and what happens when the rules really aren't followed," Chad supplied, smirking even more as he saw the guy at the end pee in his, well, skirt. "I can tell already we need to maybe show some charity and get Depends for this sorry group."

"Since they were so keen to bend the rules or push boundaries too, I don't think they deserve a warning like is tradition either," Jason commented, crossing his arms as he dared the small group to counter him. "I think it's game on starting right now."

Troy nodded, knowing he wouldn't hear anything from Ryan or Zeke, as per usual. "There you have it boys. You messed with us in ignoring our rules, our directions, and taking liberty while acting in our name. To show mercy, I'm letting you all take to noon to decide if Bolton Academy is really for you. Should you choose to stay after, well, you yourselves should be very familiar with what happens after. Ron, boys, get them out of my sight."

"With pleasure." Ron grinned as he and his friends started herding Zac and his friends away.

"Oh and Zac?" Troy called out, waiting until Zac reluctantly turned around to meet his gaze. "This fear and humiliation you are feeling right now? It's only a fraction of what you made Gabriella suffer through in the process of trying to rape her or whatever the hell you were going to do. Be lucky you didn't succeed because your punishment would have been far worse, much, much worse."

With that, Zac and his friends, the team that used to be the golden ones for P5, were ushered away by the new, still leaving a bitter taste in Troy's mouth. True, the wars declared by P5 could be extreme and brutal, filled with pranks and confrontations, but going as far as rape, well, it surpassed what any of them found as acceptable.

Before turning around to head to class, hearing Ryan getting antsy about being late, Troy glanced up and accidentally caught Gabriella looking at him. She was standing next to that friend of hers, Martha, and by the look on her face, well, Troy couldn't tell what she was thinking. He just knew in that moment, she had seen and heard enough to know what just happened to her attackers and was strangely curious to know what was running through her head.

* * *

It was lunchtime and Gabriella was more than tempted to bolt from the cafeteria as soon as she and Martha entered. Just like the first half of the day, she felt all the stares on her, wondering if it was because she was still the subject of at least one of P5's wars or if it was over this morning. Either way, as much as Gabriella had always been an outcast since day one of starting at this school, she still didn't like it.

Before Gabriella could sit down at a table for two with Martha across from her, the room fell silent once again as Zeke entered with Ryan close behind him. Zeke's gaze searched the room before it settled on Gabriella, a grin appearing on his face. "There you are."

Dumbly, Gabriella looked behind her to see who else Zeke could be addressing because she was pretty sure it wasn't her. Yet, there he was, clearly talking to her. Proof of course being in the way he walked right up to her and actually picked up the paper bag that held her lunch.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Gabriella protested, not sure what to expect from Zeke. She already knew Zeke wasn't mean like Troy, Jason, or Chad but she wasn't sure yet if she really could classify him as someone to trust as a friend either. "That's my lunch!"

Chuckling, Zeke nodded. "Yeah, figured as much. Thought I'd come rescue you though from the stares and gossip. Come on Gabriella, be my lunch date. Kitchen classroom is all ours. I promised Ryan a delicious lunch and have it almost done but you need to hurry so it doesn't burn."

"But I have lunch, and, what about Martha?"

Zeke spared Martha a look, his smile never dropping. "Martha, would you like to come with us?"

"Sure!" Martha exclaimed, excited at the prospect of dining with two guys of the most popular group on the Bolton Academy campus.

Ryan sighed in relief. "Good, we can go. Come on Zeke, if that lasagna of yours gets burned, I will not be a happy camper."

"Always dramatic," Zeke joked. He turned his attention onto Gabriella and held his arm out to her. "Ready?"

Gabriella felt all the eyes practically making holes in her body and nodded, easily slipping her hand through his arm. "Thank you."

"My pleasure Gabriella."

After making their way from the cafeteria back downstairs to the kitchen classroom where Gabriella had seen Zeke cooking not so long ago, the foursome settled around a table in silence. The timer saved the awkwardness when it went off, indicating the lasagna Zeke had popped from the fridge and into the oven was done. Thankfully, Theo was lenient with Zeke and let him break from the lessons for short periods of time to start cooking his concoctions he had prepared the night before so he and sometimes Ryan and others could have freshly cooked goodness.

Once four plates had huge slices of lasagna on the plate, Zeke set one in front of everyone at the table, Gabriella popping up to get napkins and forks after following Zeke's directions as to where they were.

Letting the lasagna cool for a little bit, Zeke said, "Sorry I didn't manage to catch you before you went into the cafeteria today Gabriella. I had a feeling after this morning that things were going to be weird up there."

"The school totally has been buzzing! Is it true that Zac and his friends have all dropped from Bolton Academy? Seriously?" Martha questioned. "I mean, did they really just go like that?"

Ryan chuckled, shaking his head. "Haven't you noticed that whenever those guys set their minds on anything that they tend to get their way?"

"Well yeah, but that was fast!"

"Still, Zac knew having been the one to lead the operations in the battles that Troy, Chad, and Jason meant business. Those three always mean business."

Tilting her head to the side, Gabriella processed what Ryan was saying and found it intriguing that he was talking about his close friends as if he wasn't friends with them. "Do you and Zeke not take part in these stupid wars?"

"Only when we think it's justified and a good cause," Ryan admitted, sticking a forkful of lasagna in his mouth and savoring it. "Zeke, man, awesome job adding the spices. Love it!"

"Thanks Ry. And Gabriella, Ryan is right. We are I guess the tame ones of the group. Don't get us wrong, we support our close friends in everything but the wars are something that really don't appeal to us."

"Huh, I have noticed that," Martha ventured to comment, recalling in her memories the wars and encounters she had witnessed. "Yet it always seems like a unified front."

"That's the way it's supposed to look and feel and for all intents and purposes is too."

"And yet, here you are, eating with us. Does that mean war has been called off of Gabriella?"

Zeke noted the hopeful look in Gabriella's eyes and hated to be the one to wash it away. "Unfortunately, no."

Not having given herself the chance to really hope that this lunch would be related to the war being called off, Gabriella nodded. "I get it, I understand. You aren't going to get in trouble over this though, will you? I don't want to see you in the girls' uniform some random morning in the near future if anyone finds out."

As the image fully painted itself in Ryan's and Zeke's minds, both chuckled. "Nah, we definitely would traumatize the school if that happened," Zeke stated, shaking his head to clear the thought. "Don't worry about us. As much as we are a group of friends, we also have individual time and such. Although, speaking of this morning, how much did you hear and witness?"

Gabriella swallowed her bite of lasagna before she replied, "Enough to see Troy means business when someone crosses him. It's nice to really know that he wouldn't stoop so low as to try to really hurt me. Pranks and such I can handle. That episode though yesterday, way too much."

"Couldn't agree with you more. I'm glad Zac and his friends are gone. They were a total liability," Zeke admitted, feeling relieved somehow when Ryan nodded his agreement. "You sure you're really okay though? I wouldn't think less of you if you were shook up or anything. It's natural."

"It bothers me but I'll be fine."

Zeke saw the determination on her face to be truly okay and stifled a chuckle. "Good for you. So, how do you like the facilities here? I assume you stayed after school to take advantage of them."

Nodding, Gabriella replied, "I thought it was my best time to swim and the facilities are amazing, just like the rest of campus."

"So you're a swimmer huh?"

"Yes. There's just something about it that's so peaceful yet so challenging."

"I get it," Ryan stated, joining the conversation. "Water is believed to soothe the soul so actually being in it, I'm sure it can feel even better to some. Kinda like being on stage is to me and being in front of a camera is for my twin." Seeing Gabriella's blank look, Ryan explained, "My twin, Sharpay. She grew up with us but has recently departed so she can explore the all too exciting world of modeling."

"Ah, okay." Gabriella didn't know what to say so she put another piece of the lasagna into her mouth, noting though the dreamy look that had settled on Zeke's face. Feeling a bit bold, she asked, "Is Sharpay your girlfriend Zeke?"

Ryan looked over at his buddy and busted up laughing, seeing the same dreamy look Gabriella had seen, patting Zeke on the shoulder as he tried to now lose the surprised look on his face that replaced the smitten one. "He wishes. Don't you Zeke?"

Zeke rolled his eyes and pushed Ryan's hand away. "Whatever man. Be nice or I'm not going to feed you ever again."

"Enough said on that." Ryan pantomimed zipping his lips before busying himself with the rest of his lasagna.

Martha picked up the conversation, using this as her prime opportunity to get to know two of the most popular guys at school, not to mention the entire state almost, at least for their generation. "So, what's it like having a private tutor for all your courses?"

As the easy flowing conversation continued, Gabriella found herself participating here and there but was more focused on the sudden twinge of pain she felt in her chest. She tried to ignore it but it got harder the longer time went on, sitting here with Zeke nearby, knowing he was definitely crushing on another girl. Sure Gabriella had no claim but she didn't want to, did she? She hardly knew Zeke but knew already that his friends for the most part were complete assholes and she remembered her mother telling her a while ago that one's friends say a lot about who you are in general.

Then again, Gabriella already knew that Zeke had stood up for her and chased away the jerks the day before, that he seemed rather genuine. Of course, she wasn't blind so she also had to admit that Zeke was definitely cute too. It was when she and Martha were putting away the dishes and such in the dishwasher that Gabriella realized with all too much clarity something she should have recognized before. She had an honest to God crush on Zeke Baylor.

* * *

Zeke had just successfully beaten Jason and Ryan both in Halo for the first time in a long time when the door to the loft opened and slammed closed, making all three look up just before they started another round per Jason's demands.

"Troy? Chad? What's wrong?" Jason called out, seeing Troy walk towards them with Chad behind him.

"What's wrong? I think we have a traitor in our midst," Troy bit out, not bothering to mask his anger and frustration. "Feeding the enemy today were you Zeke?"

Zeke sighed, putting down the controller to lean back in the couch and cross his arms. "You really want to get into this Troy?"

"Hell yeah I want to get into this Zeke! What the hell was that all about? We sent out a strong message this morning, something that got validated when Zac and his friends all dropped out of Bolton Academy, only to have tongues wagging in the afternoon about how you went in and rescued Gabriella from the lunch room! What were you thinking?"

"Hey, Troy, it wasn't anything big," Ryan started to say, only to be ignored.

"I was thinking of the fact that Gabriella went through something traumatic just yesterday, something that wasn't your order yet is something you are indirectly responsible for," Zeke countered. "It's not a crime to be nice Troy, regardless of what you may think on the matter."

"You and your niceness! Zeke, this is a war! The fact we got rid of Zac and his friends does not cancel out the war Gabriella started by interfering. I'm starting to wonder if you aren't interfering yourself now too."

Unable to stop himself, Zeke stood up, taking the few steps between him and Troy, not seeing Chad plop down on a chair nearby to join Jason and Ryan in watching the latest confrontation. "When are you going to realize that not everything can be solved by declaring war? Did you not hear yourself this morning? You know Gabriella isn't bad, you even respect her to a degree!"

"I do not!" Troy automatically protested only to see Zeke shake his head. "I don't, I have no real reason to! If anyone is getting personal with Gabriella, it's you Zeke." When Zeke didn't answer, Troy pushed on. "You like her don't you? Like, like her!"

"Dude, is Troy right?" Chad couldn't help but ask. "Are you crushing on her?"

Sighing, Zeke threw up his hands in frustration as he looked at all four of his friends. "Just because I think this whole war should be called off on her does not mean I am crushing on her. I am so totally not! You tease me all the time about crushing on Sharpay or have you forgotten that?"

"We haven't but that doesn't mean that you can't be crushing on another girl too. Hell, I do all the time," Jason pointed out.

Ryan rolled his eyes. "That's called lusting Jason, not crushing."

"Same difference."

Ignoring the side chatter, Troy studied Zeke for a few moments. "So you are sure you don't have personal feelings for Gabriella? A feeling that could cloud the way you view this situation?"

"Absolutely not."

"Prove it."

Troy's words hung in the air, no one else daring to speak while Zeke stood there trying to guess what Troy's game plan was. Not having any success, Zeke decided to just ask. "How?"

"Be the one to chase her out of our lives, out of our school. She clearly trusts you."

In under five seconds, Zeke surprised all his friends and even himself to a degree. "No, I won't do it. I'm not Zac or Ron or any other guy you can enlist to do your dirty work for you and I'm not going to hurt that girl. She's already been through humiliating pranks and something so dark yesterday that I bet you she's having nightmares yet won't admit it. You said yourself this morning how spirited she was. Why are you so intent on breaking her?"

Troy considered Zeke's words. "To use the widely used words in the business world, it's business, not personal."

"So this is all over your pride then?"

Instead of answering, Troy asked his own question. "So I can't count on you to help then Zeke?"

"No, I'm not going to have any part in this."

Part of Troy admired Zeke for sticking up to him while another was thoroughly annoyed. He wasn't angry anymore because he understood what Zeke said about being nice but there was still a matter of what to do to ensure he didn't lose this war while still playing by their rules, not some idiot's who went too far yesterday. "All right, then you leave me no choice but to handle it myself. You've never liked these wars, especially at the start, and I don't expect you to now."

"Wait, you're going to handle this?" Zeke questioned, surprise in his voice. "Really?"

"Yup, personally. Everyone else seems to fuck it up so I'll do it and I think I know just the way to do it too."

Zeke got a bad feeling in his stomach as Troy's eyes glinted with that calculating look he often got when he solidified a successful master plan. All he could do though was keep a watchful eye for the girl he had just started to care about as a friend and hope that Troy wasn't planning anything too stupid or extreme.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Gabriella was unnerved, that was the best way she knew how to address her current set of feelings and situation. Some part of her realized that early on in the school year, she had gotten so used to the stares, the teasing, the torture, that she actually subconsciously considered it to be normal. Now though, after a few weeks of absolute nothing truly happening, she felt weird about it all. In some ways, Gabriella felt more uneasy about the silence of the war called upon her than when she was actively being chased and bullied.

Since Zac and his friends left Bolton Academy, there had been a few other wars declared, all of which ended the same way, a quick exit of the target from the school. It seemed to Gabriella that she was the only one so far in Bolton Academy history to last this long. At least the way Martha tells it.

Of course, something also unheard of in Bolton Academy history also happened in the past few weeks too, something Gabriella still couldn't help but glow about even if she never voiced her happiness to everyone. Although they may not hang out all that often, Gabriella felt at this point in time she could actually call and count on Zeke as a friend. Not a best friend but a friend, someone who was invaluable to Gabriella these days.

Perhaps too that is why the war seemed to have stalled, why Gabriella was no longer a target. Honestly, she wasn't quite sure but she did enjoy the lack of attention. She had enough to worry about, like her family pressing on her to remain at Bolton Academy longer, especially since nothing had happened as of late on campus. There was the worry of her family's future with the computer store struggling. Also in the mix was this growing crush Gabriella had on Zeke, her new friend, a crush she knew she could never show. After all, he was a rich, good looking guy who could have anyone he wanted. Why ruin a friendship over something she could never have?

Almost as if her thoughts conjured him up, Zeke rounded the corner of one of the school buildings and instantly spotted her. "Hey Gabs. Heading up to the pool?"

Flushing at the realization that Zeke cared enough to know her schedule, Gabriella nodded. "Relieving the stress that is the school day."

"Glad you have that. Just like I have my cooking. Want some company?"

Not one to refuse, Gabriella smiled. "Sure, that'd be great."

"Excellent."

The pair made their way across campus, catching up on the latest news of each other, which wasn't much considering they had just spoken two days before. When Gabriella went into the locker room to change into her swimsuit, Zeke waited outside, anxious about leaving her completely alone after what happened a few weeks ago. Although Zeke knew that Troy wouldn't order anything so devious himself, somehow Troy's silence at the same time also unnerved Zeke even more. After what Troy said not so long ago, about how he was taking everything into his own hands, Troy had stopped talking about things regarding Gabriella and the war in front of Zeke but he was almost positive that Troy still had something up his sleeve.

That was the odd thing about their group of five. They were closer than anything but when it came time to keep secrets from each other, for the betterment of everyone, no one had a qualm about it. For that reason, Zeke knew he wouldn't know ahead of time what Troy had really planned until it happened. What was nice too about the circle of friends though was that they accepted each other as they were, meaning Zeke wasn't being ostracized for choosing to be friends with Gabriella but he was the only one who really paid her any positive attention. Sure Ryan hung out with them once in a while but he never actively sought her out, only when he was with Zeke.

When Gabriella popped out of the locker rooms after changing, she wasn't all that surprised to see Zeke leaning against the wall, texting someone. Not wanting to invade his privacy, Gabriella looked away from the screen and instead greeted him. "Ready to go?"

Zeke looked up with a grin on his face. "Sure. Let me just send this text off."

As they walked, Gabriella couldn't help but ask, "So, who put that grin on your face?" Even the few moments of walking down to the pool weren't enough to wipe that look of happiness on his face. "Or was it the news you got?"

Feeling embarrassed, Zeke glanced down at the floor they were walking on. "It was just Sharpay. Guess I don't hide my crush all that well from anyone these days."

Gabriella had to forcibly swallow the tightness in her throat at the mention of that name that just passed her friend's lips. Ever since Gabriella figured out that she was crushing on Zeke, the random mentioning of the blonde made it that much harder for her to hear. It's not like she had any say on how Zeke felt or who he crushed on, Gabriella realized that. It still didn't make it any easier like she had hoped would happen as time moved on and their friendship grew.

"You are who you are Zeke," Gabriella replied, a forced smile on her lips. "One day she'll realize what a wonderful guy you are and who knows, by then, it may be her loss."

Wrapping an arm around Gabriella's shoulders, Zeke smiled down at her. "Thanks for the encouragement Gabs. Now see, this is why I enjoy our time together. You're always straight and honest with me even if you know I have no real shot at something yet you also embellish some to keep my hopes alive."

"What are friends for?"

"Not all friends are like you," he answered, thinking of four guys who were like his brothers who more likely would have teased him for acting silly over Sharpay yet again instead of listening to and encouraging him. "One of these days, you're going to have to give me a thirty second head start and race me."

Laughing, Gabriella shook her head, giving him her best impish grin. "Only if we extend that lead to a full minute. I'd feel sorry for you otherwise."

"Ouch, that burns!"

They both burst into laughter as they rounded the last corner and opened the door to the pool area. That laughter died though when Gabriella took in the sorry sight that was the pool.

"THAT JERK!"

Gabriella's sudden exclamation quickly brought Zeke down from Cloud Nine enough for him to take in the mess that greeted them both. He didn't have to think too hard to understand who Gabriella suspected was responsible. Sadly, he had to acknowledge that she was probably right.

"That asinine moron! Does he have no respect for his own school? His own family's academy? Forget me, God, how could he do this? I swear if I ever get my hands on that filthy, good for nothing S.O.B., it will be too soon!"

Not wanting to see the small fireball raging in front of him explode, Zeke placed his calming hands on her shoulders from behind, wincing as he felt how tense she was. "Gabriella, you have to calm down. This is what he wants."

Shaking her head, Gabriella refused to look Zeke in the eyes as her brown eyes filled with tears. It was one thing to torture her endlessly and then to ignore her. But this, this was just a whole different thing to Gabriella.

All around her there was trash, surrounding the pool, in the pool, on the chairs. Paper cups, plastic bags, half eaten food, aluminum cans, paper plates, feminine products, and even a few condoms here and there. In short, it looked like there had been an all out party here, which was left to be cleaned up by the custodial staff. Thing was, Gabriella knew the pool had been spotless just a few hours ago when she passed by to get something out of her locker.

"Come on Gabriella, let's go." Despite his allegiance to Troy and the rest of their friends, Zeke felt terrible knowing how much Gabriella was upset by this last strike of P5. Realizing he was part of the group who still had a war declared with this now trembling girl in front of him made him sick, feel torn inside. Maybe it was time to change the game and stop all this before it got way out of hand. "The custodial staff will take care of this and I'll call the head of the athletic department to make sure the pool is properly cleaned and treated before tomorrow so you can swim in it again."

"No."

Just this one word was enough to stop Zeke from turning around and heading out. "What?"

"No."

Zeke heard the determination in her voice, her resolve, her fury. Although he was willing to bet his fortune that Gabriella was crying, confirmed with her quick wipes at her eyes despite her back still being turned to him, Zeke knew he was only going to see the strength of this young woman right now and he admired her for it. "What do you need my help with?"

His gentle offer to help nearly brought Gabriella to her knees in appreciation. Instead, she found every ounce of strength she still had and replied, "I need you to take me to the bastard."

"Sure, we can go right now…"

"No," she interrupted. "I need to first clean this up. The longer it all sits, the more tainted everything will be. Then, we go find the prick."

"But Gabriella, it's dirty and the water is polluted."

"I leave it like this, he wins, they all win. Not just Troy, but every other student here who has pushed me around, teased me, ignored me. I'm stronger than to let that happen." With that, Gabriella dropped her bag down on the ground and started picking up the area directly around them.

When she heard Zeke move, followed by the door opening and closing again, Gabriella was sure she had just been abandoned. She couldn't really fault him for it but it burned knowing that he left her to clean up on her own. Gabriella had all intention of cleaning up this mess but she would have liked to have had the support of anyone just then, just something to keep her all in one piece.

Swallowing the burn of the next round of unshed tears down her throat, Gabriella continued gathering up trash as she went, putting it in a pile, praying that there was nothing as devious like poison laced on the trash. At the lengths she'd already personally seen during the school year, she wouldn't put it past anyone at this school to do something like that to try to burn her or, gulp, kill her.

She was concentrating so hard that she didn't hear the door open again or the steps approaching her. In fact, she jumped when a set of latex gloves were dangled in front of her face. "If we're going to do this," Zeke stated, "we're going to do this in a sanitary way and you aren't doing this alone. Got gloves and a few plastic bags. And I saw a long pole with a net hanging on the wall. No going in the water, got me?"

"But it'll be faster…"

Zeke though shut her up with a stern look. "You're into science just as much as I am. Do you even know what could be lurking in that water now despite the levels of chlorine present?"

Knowing Zeke was right and completely grateful that he came back and was helping, Gabriella managed a smile as she took the offered gloves. "Thanks Zeke. For saving me, again."

Unable to resist, Zeke playfully pulled on Gabriella's ponytail. "That's what friends are for, right? Come on, let's get a move on and I better not see you near the water even if you are a fish. Deal?"

"Deal," she agreed, slipping her hands into the gloves, which did make her feel better about picking up everything that currently littered her beloved pool area. As she went, Gabriella reflected on Troy's latest attack and had to admit that Troy got smart. He found a big weakness of hers and had struck where it hurt. That of course didn't do anything more than piss her off now that she had time to work through her earlier pain and sorrow at seeing her normal sanctuary ruined, even temporarily.

Once everything was picked up, including everything in the pool, Zeke settled the last plastic bag against the pile near the door before ripping his gloves off. "There, done." When Gabriella didn't answer, Zeke looked over at her and watched silently as she walked towards the edge of the pool. "Gabs?"

When Gabriella didn't answer him, growing more concerned about her, Zeke walked towards her, careful not to startle her as she stopped at the edge, wrapping her arms around her midsection. He pulled even with her and glanced at her profile, seeing the glimmering tears there in her eyes, watching as she fought to keep control of her emotions. Unable to resist, Zeke wrapped an arm around her back, resting his hand there on her hip, taking a step closer so she was now leaning against his side in a half embrace.

After a few minutes of silence, a tiny voice asked him, "Why do these wars exist? Why does he feel the need to be so nasty?"

With a sigh, Zeke tried searching his mind for any explanation she would understand but failed. Hell, he recognized himself that he didn't always know what went on in his friend's mind, any of their minds, when they were involved in P5's wars. "Look at it this way," he started, meeting her gaze as she looked up at him. "You are the longest war in Bolton Academy history, and that includes our pre-K days. The fact that you've hung in there so long means something and even Troy recognizes it, that you're strong and have more of a backbone than a lot of the students here."

"Lot of good that's doing me. It seems like he never stops, they never stop. I thought I honestly got a break, foolish of me as that was, but I did really hope the war was all over with how quiet it has become lately but I realize now that was his plan."

"To make you think he forgot about you and hurt you that way?"

"Possibly, but I think it was more to lull me more into a false sense of security. I don't know why I didn't think of it before."

"Because you know better but always try to see the best in everyone. Why else would you even fathom being friends with me?"

Gabriella gently shook her head as a small smile appeared on her lips. "More like what's wrong with you to want to befriend me, the subject of one of your group of friends' wars."

Chuckling, relieved to see Gabriella smiling again, he answered, "Nothing is wrong. I just see an amazing young woman and a great friend when all they see is a threat because she's more self-confident and brighter than any other girl here on campus."

"A threat? Me?" she scoffed. "Unlikely."

"Yet so very true," Zeke replied, grinning as Gabriella rolled her eyes. "So, what's next?"

Gabriella dragged a corner of her lower lip between her teeth and lightly nibbled on it as she thought. "Can you take me to Troy?"

Already figuring that was where she would request to go, Zeke readily agreed. "If you're sure, I can take you to the loft now. I think they'll all be there."

"Good, I want to settle this once and for all."

Zeke didn't know if that was really possible but by the sudden determined look on her face, he actually realized he wouldn't doubt that she could based on her resolve. Question was how Troy and the guys would react.

* * *

As the screen blurred while Jason rewound the feed for the tenth plus time and stopped it at the exact moment Gabriella and Zeke entered the pool area to play the scene again, Troy watched, focusing on her expressions, seeing the misery there but also the fire later that came. Jason and Chad were enjoying the feed and had begun to loop through the start of Gabriella's torture again and again while they waited for Jason's chef and team to arrive with their dinner.

Troy did too to an extent but he was more interested in studying her, watching her, finding himself more and more curious as to what really made her tick and what made Gabriella Montez so damn strong. Despite how upset she was in this last battle, she still was strong enough to send Troy a very loud message not even knowing he'd see. Instead of running away in tears, Gabriella instead resolved to clean up the mess P5's new team made with Zeke's voluntary help.

A part of Troy didn't even get bothered by the fact that Zeke was helping, their friendship was something Troy didn't understand but let be now as he realized Zeke was going to be her friend no matter what Troy or any of the others said. What was interesting was, despite the lack of sound preventing any of their conversations from being recorded, Troy could easily tell that there was real concern Zeke had for Gabriella. In fact, he wouldn't be surprised if Zeke came over to straighten him out again. Scratch that, Troy would be surprised if Zeke didn't come.

It was during their meal after the dinner arrived that Zeke finally appeared though, bringing a very unexpected guest.

Jason was the first to spy Zeke leading in a now familiar brunette. "Whoa, Zeke, who said you could bring her here? This is our headquarters man!"

Chad and Troy's heads snapped around as well, Chad swallowing the piece of steak that was currently in his mouth. "Yeah dude, what the hell? Did you breathe in too much chlorine fumes or something while you were being all good Samaritan and helping her clean the pool area?"

There was a small gasp before fire blazed behind Gabriella's normally calm mocha eyes. "You were there! Or at the very least watching from the safety of your precious loft here!"

"Maybe," Chad admitted with a sneer, "what's it to you? Part of the fun of these wars is to see the reactions, to see how far we can push people like you."

"We did quite enjoy every time you bent over to pick up the different trash pieces that were left for you by the way," Jason threw in, smirking as he saw her cheeks flush. "Great views."

"J, enough," Troy cut in, surprising Zeke, who was just about to shut him up as well. Instead, Troy leaned back in his chair and regarded Gabriella, who now stood a few feet away, completely alert and attentive. "It took you a lot longer to seek me out about this war Gabriella, I have to admit I'm impressed."

Gabriella replayed Troy's words in her head as she stood there, trying to read his face that was pretty much blank at the moment as she struggled to find out his real motivation and meaning. "What exactly has you impressed?"

"That you have enough courage and, well, balls to last this long and to finally come here. Guess my tactic of letting you believe I forgot all about you worked, huh? Gave this latest battle a bigger kick?"

"Something like that," Gabriella admitted, all too aware of the three pairs of eyes that were watching her conversation with Troy. "Tell me, oh mighty King Troy of Bolton Academy, what does a lowly peasant like myself have to do to get on that list to be ignored?"

Troy raised an eyebrow at this. "Are you ready to admit defeat then Miss Montez?"

Realizing her slight mistake, Gabriella shook her head. "No, not defeat but since you did manage to go a few weeks without torturing or belittling me, I was wondering how I could make that permanent. I am going to Bolton Academy because of the education and not to be a toy to anyone, least of all you."

"More like you got a scholarship and are damn lucky to be going to BA," Chad sneered. "You should be on your knees thanking Troy and his parents for being generous and giving you this opportunity."

"You're right, I am here on the good graces of the Bolton family and for that I am grateful." As Chad's jaw dropped, Gabriella took satisfaction in the ability to make that happen. "However, that is no reason for me to be the target of the heir's constant bullying. If that was in the terms of the scholarship, I'd happily comply but since it was not, even in the tiny, fine print, I want to know what it's going to take for you all to just leave me the hell alone."

Chad and Jason exchanged a look, completely ignoring Zeke still, before looking to Troy to answer.

Contemplating his options, Troy took his time before answering but knew when he found the perfect response. "You want to call a draw essentially to this war? The first ever in BA history. Is that right?"

After licking her dry lips, Gabriella answered, "Yes, that's what I want. I just want the chance to actually devote all my attention and focus on my studies to live up to the hopes your parents have."

For a moment, his jaw tightened at the mention of his parents but he relaxed it, having enough practice controlling his emotions not to show it to the girl who still dared to give him a defying look. No lie, that impressed him even more. "All right, I think that's reasonable."

"What?" Jason asked.

"Troy, dude, are you serious?" Chad questioned.

Zeke remained silent still, instead studying and then spotting that calculating look on Troy's face. 'Oh shit, this is going to end badly…'

"What do I have to do?" For her part, Gabriella couldn't read Troy as well as Zeke but she was smart enough to know that after everything that had happened between them, that there would be a cost for leniency. "What do you want?"

"Sleep with me." Troy held Gabriella's gaze for the next few moments until Gabriella looked away, savoring the rosy tints that blossomed on her cheeks. "Sleep with me and this will all be over." When Gabriella didn't respond immediately, Troy stood up and walked closer to her, stopping only when he was almost toe to toe with her. "What do you say? Do you want it bad enough to give away your virginity for it or are you like all the other girls who claim to be innocent and yet are wild in bed?"

Gabriella was stunned at first by Troy's words but the last question he asked woke her up, painfully, but it did the job to get her attention. "So this is how it's going to be, huh? What's wrong Troy? Not getting any from the females you buy with your money?"

Smirking, Troy crossed his arms over his chest as he looked down at the brunette. "I'm not into prostitutes Gabriella."

"I didn't mean prostitutes. I meant the girls and women alike you attract because you're the heir to the big Bolton enterprise. It's a heavy weight to carry I bet but I'm pretty sure you take full advantage of that and more. Must suck though, not knowing who is your real friend, who really wants to date you, for you and not your money. That's why you little boys created this exclusive club of yours, isn't it? To protect yourselves?"

Some of what Gabriella said actually struck home and left Troy with some open wounds he'd never admit to, especially to her, right now. "You don't know what you're talking about. All you know is some lower middle class existence, working in your family's computer store that could go under at any moment, at the snap of one's fingers even. Then what would happen to you Gabriella? What would happen to your precious family?"

Detecting a threat beneath Troy's words, Gabriella gave into her instinct and raised her hand, quickly slapping Troy across the face, hard. "Don't you ever, ever talk about my family like that again. You know nothing of them!"

"And you know nothing of me and my family, my situation, or my friends!" Troy exclaimed, actually rubbing his cheek and jaw where her petite hand had made sharp contact. "Don't even begin to think you understand something you have never experienced."

"Right back at you Troy! God, how stupid can you be? You've never worked a day in your life yet there you stand mocking me and my family who work hard to have the life we do. They are the reason why I'm still even at Bolton Academy. My parents have always wanted what's best for me, sacrificed so much and worked so hard to make sure my brother and I always had a sturdy family home to grow up in."

"Aww, isn't that precious? A regular after school program storyline," Jason quipped.

"Shut up Jason!" Troy shouted, surprising his friend. Narrowing his eyes, Troy asked, "So this is how it's going to be huh?"

Sighing, feeling completely drained but not ready to let Troy get the better of her, Gabriella tried to find that middle ground with him one last time, knowing that even the biggest tyrants had a weak spot or a momentary flash of good sense. "It doesn't have to be. You've shown your power, you've shown who rules the school. I just want to be a wallflower and get a good education. That's all I want."

Using the quiet moments that followed, while everyone waited anxiously for Troy's response, Troy maintained her gaze, seeing genuine hope there. Just as suddenly, Troy heard himself speaking words he'd never spoken before. "All right. The war is a draw."

The smile he saw blossom on Gabriella's lips told Troy he did the right thing, for once, but it also confused him. After all, he had never given up on a war before until he won. What made the difference now?

He didn't get much time to contemplate this as Gabriella chose to escape while she was ahead. With a quickly murmured, "Thank you Troy," she left the loft, leaving Chad, Jason, and Zeke all eyeing Troy.

"Did that just happen?" Chad eventually asked. "Did you just let her go?"

"Yeah, I did," Troy confirmed, not taking his eyes off the closed front door through which Gabriella had escaped through.

"Why?"

"Just felt right, something told me to do it."

Zeke couldn't help but grin. "Conscience," he coughed, "conscience."

Rolling his eyes, Troy shook his head as he felt his body actually relax before walking back to his seat and returning to his dinner. "Maybe or maybe it was something entirely different."

Unable to believe that the war that lasted weeks was over just like that, Chad asked, "So is this just part of a new strategy? New false sense of security?"

"Nope, it's a draw and you all are going to respect that. I have my reasons."

"You better."

Troy returned Chad's incredulous look. "You actually think I'm pulling your leg about this for no reason? Come on man, you know me."

"I do, we all do, which is why this is so unexpected."

"Just trust me. Everything happens for a reason or so one of my nannies told me when I was little," Troy replied, spearing a piece of broccoli before popping it in his mouth to eat.

Seeing that Troy was done talking about it, Jason, Chad, and Zeke forced themselves to move onto another topic, Zeke grabbing a plate from the cabinet and filling it with his own dinner. All the while though, he kept glancing up at Troy and catching him in deep thought, which intrigued Zeke even more. Troy always did things for a reason, Chad had a valid point. However, with Troy admitting that the war was now a draw, Zeke was at a loss as to what was now being plotted in Troy's head but knew whatever it was had to be better than the last several weeks. Anything would be better, right?


End file.
